Misguided Soul
by bmrdbgt
Summary: The final addition to the Mistaken Identity series. Gohan and Xena take center stage as the primary characters. Focusing on their relationship as well as the struggles of their individual lives the story centers on the two young saiyans as they go into their teenage years not knowing what sort of drama and adventure lies in store.
1. High School

_**Misguided Soul**_

 _ **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**_

 _ **Chapter 1: High School**_

It had been seven years since the defeat of Cell. In that span of time so much had changed. Most of all his home had changed. After his parent's amicable divorce his mother had given birth to Goten, the last son she'd ever have with her former husband, and had gotten married to Yamcha of all people. Now they were expecting yet ANOTHER kid, a girl this time.

It was strange. Gohan felt a bit separated from this world. Though he loved his mother, and her new husband treated her well Gohan didn't seem to quite fit into the picture they were making together. His father, and Vega were off in the mountains with their two kids Tarble and Bardock. Once Vega had found out about Goten she had insisted upon having another so she wouldn't lose to the human. Gohan had poked his head in now and then to say hi, but still the same issue of not exactly fitting into the picture was unnerving.

He imagined Xena felt the same, which is why she moved out the first chance she could and into Capsule with her father and Bulma. He hadn't heard from her in awhile, but the last he knew she was doing apprentice work at Capsule Corps and going to school now. Since she'd started late she'd be a senior this year, same as him.

As for himself, the standout, he may have been able to continue his training and finally reach Super Saiyan 2, but after seven years of nothing threatening to kill you, fighting gradually took a backseat to his studies. Still he wanted to branch out from his desk at home, get out in the world like Xena had. So after a few years of pleading he finally convinced Chichi to let him go to a REAL high school where there were actual classes, teachers who lectured, the smell of chalk, and best of all kids his own age.

He wanted to make some friends in this new age of peace, friends that would last him a lifetime outside the world of fighting and danger. He carefully selected which school he wanted… and finally chose Orange Star High in Satan City. Aside from the fact it was where Hercule Satan lived, it was a bustling town FULL of people and action. He knew he'd be able to make all sorts of friends there and still have a great push into college.

He took the exam, passed it with flying colors, and put together his stuff for his flight into town. It'd been awhile since he'd rode nimbus. The fluffy orange cloud hadn't seen much action since his father hadn't been able to ride it do to the incidents that happened when Gohan was a kid. It was like a little family heirloom only he and his brothers could play with… although he imagined Tarble might not be able to in the near future seeing as he took after his mother… the kid was constantly itching for a fight and challenging his younger siblings to a spar.

And that sounded bad. Gohan thought to himself with a frown. He LIKED Vega… and he liked the fact that she made his dad so happy. Living at home when his parents were married hardly a day went by without the two of them swiping and disagreeing with each other. With Vega his dad was more content.. .sure they argued, but it was more playful and passionate, the kind of arguing that couples were SUPPOSED to have. He and Xena had similar arguments in the past, not so much passionate but playful.

Damn he missed her. When they were young they had this near unbreakable connection, but something happened that had caused them to drift apart. Around the time they were fourteen Xena started to change, she'd look at him for long periods of time then quickly avert her gaze. He'd catch her muttering to herself looking miserable and then snap at him when he tried to ask her what was wrong. Finally she'd moved out of her parents house, making it nearly impossible for him to go visit since Capsule was so much farther away then just a hop skip to his dad's house in the mountains.

It made him sad. Determined, he made a promise to himself to pop by capsule corps on the way home and pay her a visit. In fact, he would make a point of it from now on. No way he was gonna let this opportunity to get out of the house go to waste.

The moment he landed he had to make a sprint for the school. He was behind schedule, but with the Saiyan speed assisting him he made good timing on the jog through the town. He paused when hearing a commotion and caught several violent thieves robbing a bank, the cops trying to stop them but were no match against the heavy weapon fire.

"Aww man, another bunch of crooks." He looked to his watch and nodded his head. "I've got time now… I guess if I transform no one will recognize me." Flashing into Super Saiyan mode he launched his attack. Cops couldn't believe their eyes as the golden fighter relinquished the weapons, knocked out the robbers, and totaled the getaway car.

Onlookers crowded around the wreckage, and then looked around for the hero. However as quick as he had come into play, the fighter vanished without a trace. Gohan hid off to the side, hair normal again and he looked like just another pedestrian checking out the action.

"Hey you!" A voice from behind startled him and he looked over at a young female with long black hair and striking blue eyes. "Tell me what happened here."

"Huh? Oh I guess I wasn't paying much attention." Gohan laughed a bit nervously and edged himself away before making the dash for the school.

Videl watched the strange boy run off before turning around and asking some pedestrians who recognized her a couple questions. Coming up the street a motorcycle halted and revved, the driver pausing and glancing in Gohan's direction, his form slowly disappearing behind another building

"Was that… huh, weird. Hey Videl!" The driver sat comfy and waved her over. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah, I guess. I missed all the action though. What is it with all these fighters with the gold hair? First the cell games, and now in my own town. " Videl said with a pout. "I got a pretty good description but he doesn't sound like anybody I've ever heard of except that he wears the badge for our school."

"Huh, that's interesting… maybe he's new or in a different class. Either way the job is done… want a ride to school?"

Videl smiled watching as the driver flipped up the visor to give her a wink. "Sure, Zee."

 **~Orange Star High~**

Her future self had it right. Posing as a boy made life a little more challenging and entertaining. Originally Xena had taken on the appearance of a boy to keep people from recognizing her from the Cell Games, but she'd come to like the things that came with it… No long hair to get in her way or pulled on, no skirts, dresses, or itchy materials, and she could converse with guys about fighting and training without having that snort of disapproval. Not to mention she could flirt with any female and not have it feel or seem weird… of course doing anything beyond a kiss was out, but she liked the interaction.

She'd given up on male companionship a long time ago, for reasons she continued to deny. Females were softer, sweeter, and more eager for attention than males. She didn't imagine getting into anything serious but she liked the interaction, the flirtation, and the play. Since she couldn't sleep with any of them without revealing her identity, most saw her as this cute bad boy just looking for a little flirtation, and were happy to give her that.

Easy.

Videl was the exception to the female fighter rule. As daughter of Hercule Satan she got the respect and admiration that all female fighters deserved. It was too bad the girl was so stubborn and narrow minded. Even now Videl was stuck on the golden fighter. She sat cross legged on her desk looking around her classroom seeing if any of her classmates fit the description given to her. Her friend Erasa sat on her left, a guy named Sharpener on her right, and Zee sat just below them next to Gary who was the biggest Hercule Satan fan she knew.

Leaning back in her chair arm slung over the back, Zee propped a boot up on the desk. She had headphones in one ear and left the other bare so she could listen in on the conversation happening above her.

"Sharpener, don't tell me you're the gold fighter." She watched the pretty boy run fingers through his long blonde hair with a chuckle.

"Oh please, I don't have time to play Superhero. I spend all morning working on my abs." Sharpener replied arrogantly.

"That's right, because your physical appearance is so important." Zee smirked. "Honestly, Sharpener if you trained your mind as much as you trained your body you'd be a genius."

"So says the prodigy, Why do you even come to school? You're smarter than the any of the teachers here."

"I come for the chicks," Zee winked at Videl making her laugh.

The teacher entered, Videl took her seat, and Zee righted herself up. She tugged out her headphones and pulled up her bag. She glanced up when the teacher announced there was a new student and all that ran through her head was. 'Oh No, not MY class!'

She let out a small curse when she saw Gohan come in nervously glancing around. When their eyes met she quickly stood up and shouted. "Cuz! Whoa what a surprise!"

Gohan blinked and then his grin spread. "Hey! Wow what are you doing here Xe- Geh!" Gohan felt her arm come around his neck and pull him down to her height and straight into a noogie. She grinned and laughed at the teacher.

"Excuse us professor, this is my cousin, I'd like to have a moment with him before you bring him into the jungle." She shoves him back out in the hall, closes and locks the door and then whirls on him. "Of all the schools, of all the classrooms why the hell did you choose MINE?"

"Geez it's good to see you too Xena." He jumped back a little when she pointed a finger in his face.

"That's Zee, if you're gonna stay here you'll call me Zee and you will refrain from referring to me as a female."

"Oh… so that's why you're dressed like that. Here I thought you'd joined a biker gang or something."

"Shut up, I like my style." She crosses her arms. "I'm warning you, Gohan. Blow my cover, Super Saiyan 2 or not, I'll plow my fist into your face."

"Okay, okay, i got it! We're still cousins, but we're males. I've got it." He held up his hands defensively and then quickly hugged her. "still it's good to see you. I've missed you."

She brushed him off with a slight blush. "Yeah yeah, don't get all mushy on me, cuz. I have a reputation to protect." She opens the door and shoved him in. "There now you're all caught up… Hey everyone this is my cousin, Gohan, from the country. Everyone be sure to treat him well okay?" She pat his shoulder and returned to her seat letting out a heavy breath.

"Uh right, thank you Zee. Well you heard her, and you should all follow his example, he got perfect scores on all his exams. You could learn a thing or two from him. Now then Gohan go ahead and sit wherever you like and we'll get started."

Erasa immediately stood up and waved him over. "Yoo hoo new boy, there's an empty seat right here." She pointed beside her giggling.

Gohan walked up the steps, glancing at Zee on his way up and then taking a seat. He watched her attention go to the front for the lecture, and watched her take an object out of her bag. His eyes blinked and widen and he leaned over whispering. "Zee, what are you doing with a scouter?"

"I modified it," she spoke simply and pressed a button. The screen blinked and scanned and as the professor spoke she watched the words appear immediately taking down notes. "I'll get you one, I'm sure your mom would appreciate it."

"That's pretty cool." Gohan laughed a little. This was great, he thought. He never imagined Xena to be the type to sit in class and listen to a lecture and here she was in the same class as him. He hadn't expected to see Xena at school, and it looked like he'd be keeping up his inner promise to see her more often.

As the lecture went on he kept his ears on the sounds, but his eyes on his cousin. She'd changed a lot in looks, the male disguise would have completely fooled him had he not seen a similar version with her future self during the Cell despite the outside shell he knew just from that brief encounter that she hadn't changed a bit.

She was still fierce and vibrant, and one smart cookie.

The first class when by in a flash, and during english, after the professor's changed, Erasa sparked a conversation with Gohan.

"So Gohan, do you want to know who Videl's dad is? I bet you'd be surprised."

"Hmm?" Gohan's interest peaked and he glanced over at the black hair blue eyed girl he had met earlier that day. "Oh? Who is it?"

Zee glanced over her shoulder the scouter blinking at her searching for the right source material and she clicked a button to change it to voice recording so she could listen in.

"She's the daughter of Mr. Satan."

"What? Hercule Satan? Wow that's pretty neat, i bet it's pretty interesting being a celebrity's daughter." He heard Xena snort a little and a little drop of sweat slid down his forehead as he laughed.

"You bet, of course being the friend of the daughter of a celebrity is pretty cool too, don't you think?"

"So you're the guy!" Videl said suddenly breaking up the conversation. "I was wondering why you looked so familiar. You're the guy I talked to in front of the bank this morning."

"Oh wow, you mean right after the Gold Fighter vanished?" The question came from Erasa.

"Huh? Who's the Gold Fighter? Is he a celebrity too?" Gohan asked and Xena put a hand to her face struggling not to groan.

"Wow you're out of the gossip loop. He's a superhero with super strength and magic powers. They say he looks like a teenage boy but with glowing golden hair."

Gohan gulped and tried to turn his eyes away. He was panicking on the inside wondering how the subject of him beating up a couple of bank robbers turned into a five minute legend. He chanced a glance over and spotted Videl's eyes narrowed on him and he paled. Did she know?

"Hey, Gohan, i just remembered what was said that the Gold Fighter was wearing. It was a white shirt, a black vest, and red pants… sound familiar?" She eyed his outfit up and down.

"It's probably just a coincidence, Videl." Zee interjected quickly. "I know my cousin and he's the gentlest person I know. He appalls violence." She turned her body and leaned back some smirking at Gohan. "Besides his hair isn't even gold. It'd take a lot of paint to get that color to glow."

"haha, very funny, Zee." Gohan laughed but looked at her with great appreciation. He wasn't sure how he was gonna explain that one.

"I guess you're right," Videl frowned biting her thumbnail keeping her eyes on Gohan for the time being. Zee was right, but still he made her suspicious.

During class he seemed normal enough, taking notes and listening to the lectures. He'd once in awhile turn his eyes to Zee, but that was normal since they were related. What was weird was the look in his eyes when he watched Zee… it was overly affectionate, and in her opinion a bit creepy.

When it was time for PE Videl stood up and watched Zee sling her gym bag over her shoulder. "You gonna go change in the bathroom again?"

"Yeah, why do you wanna come with me?" Zee teased with a smirk. Videl gave a short snorting laugh and waved him off.

"Why do you change in the bathroom? Don't they provide locker rooms for that kinda thing?" Gohan asked staring blankly at Zee's glare and then it clicked and he smacked his forehead. "Oh, right, never mind."

"For a book worm, Gohan, you're so stupid. I go in there cuz I like my privacy, it's a total buzz kill to watch guys strip." Zee waves him off and strut out. Erasa giggled at Gohan's flushed face and she pat his arm.

"Has he always been like that?" Erasa wanted to know.

"For the most part, I guess." Gohan rubbed the back of his head. "Zee's always been a abrasive, but he's actually a bit shy and private. It's kind of an odd mix."

"He said he lives with his dad, does that mean his parents are divorced? Where's his mom?"

"Oh, that's where things get complicated. His mom and my dad hooked up awhile back and now live in the woods with our brothers. When he was younger he lived with them but things got too crowded for his taste I guess and he decided to move in with his dad at Capsule where there was more room and stuff."

"Oh wow so you two are pretty close, huh?"

"Yeah, well we were anyway." Gohan grabbed up his stuff and hoping to avoid getting any further into the conversation went to the boy's locker room to change. The class met out on the fields to participate in a baseball game.

Gohan glanced to Zee, she wore a t shirt with the capsule logo on it tucked into some loose sweats and a baseball cap over her short mop of hair. She pounded her fist into a glove. chuckling with Sharpener as they bumped fists together in a casual brotherly motion. Seemed like she wasn't just popular with the girls, but the guys too. Xena had found a persona that allowed her to mesh with them on a scale he hadn't expected from her. Though she was short in stature compared to all the other guys she stood tall and confident which spoke volumes.

"Hey Brains, do you know what baseball is?" Sharpener teased giving the dork a once over. He didn't catch Zee's eyes giving him a warning look.

"Yeah, well I ready a couple books on it." Gohan explained causing a snicker to leak from Sharpener's lips.

"Really, then i'm sure you'll be the next all star." He turned to Videl. "You can have him, my team just filled up." He pat Zee on the back ushering him off as Videl grunted at him.

"Yeah thanks a lot."

"Oh come on, I'm sure he can come up with lots of strategies since he's such a smarty." Erasa coaxed and flirtatiously batted her eyes in Gohan's direction.

"Fine, I'm putting you in right field," Videl coached. "You know where that is, right?"

"Yeah, on the right….right?"

"Right."

They got into position, Gohan stood out in the field, bored mostly since majority of the players nipped the balls across the ground or off to the left. When it was Zee's turned to bat Gohan watched, wondering how she would play it out. Videl sent the ball zipping by and with quick reflexes Zee merely tapped the bat out letting it bounce against the metal and go skidding between Videl's legs. Zee made it to second and shot a smirk over her shoulder at him.

"Having fun?"

"How did you do that? I was expecting you to send it flying to outer space!"

"Part of the training, Gohan, is to learn how to hold back." She flicked up her wrist flashing her watch. "It also helps to have Capsule technology on hand."

Gohan eyed the watch, suddenly wanting one of his own. He heard the ring of the bat as Sharpener sent the ball flying much the way he expected Zee to. He jumped up, Zee cursing when he snagged the fly ball over 20 feet in the air. "Baka!"

Gohan glanced down at the field, he'd spotted the runner on third had left the base. "If I throw it to third, he'll be out. Okay Gohan, nice and slow." Gohan tossed, gently he hoped, towards his teammate. The panicked human stretched out his hand the ball burning and still spinning in his glove as he fell on his butt from the power behind it.

Zee had to struggle with a groan and she pulled her cap over her face. "Idiot."

Gohan landed looking around at the shocked faces and Zee's flushed one. He too pulled his cap over his eyes tiptoeing towards the benches.

"That move was beautiful Gohan." The teacher spoke proudly. "You must have jumped 25 feet into the air, way to go son."

"Oh it was just beginner's luck, I just got some new shoes that's all."

"Heh, right, it's gotta be the shoes." The teacher mused and immediately was thinking of ways to get Gohan on some of his sports teams. He looked to Zee who was taking her catcher's position. "Your cousin's a natural athlete."

"It runs in the family, but he's got the clumsy gene, coach, he wouldn't last long on any team." She crouched down blowing out a breath as Gohan came up to bat. Grunting she put her glove into her face. "Gohan, that's the left handed batter's box."

"Oh, is that wrong?"

"No, you're ambidextrous so I guess it doesn't matter." She adjusted her position. "Just try not to hit anybody, we don't want anybody rushed to the hospital."

"Right…" he better not swing then. He looked to Sharpener his hands gripped on the bat and he waited.

"So you think you can hit my pitches… we'll just see about that." Sharpener eyed him coolly his hands adjusting on the ball in his glove as Zee gave him signals, he rejected the curve then when she signaled a fast ball he smirked and nodded. "I'm gonna have you ducking like a sissy." He murmured to himself and purposely aimed the ball for Gohan's head.

Zee was fast, she got to her feet knocking Gohan down and catching the ball quick in her glove her eyes sharp as razors glaring at her pitcher. On the ground Gohan looked up shocked.

"Hey what was that for?"

"Take a walk, Gohan."

"What?"

"That ball would have hit you right in the head… take...a...walk." She turned those cold eyes to him and it sent a quick shiver down his spine. He quickly got to his feet then jogged to first base.

"Time out, coach." Zee yanked the cap off her head slapping it to the ground along with her glove and strut up to Sharpener. The guy laughed a bit holding his fist out.

"Nice catch, Zee. You've got some real great reflexes. Gah!" He choked a bit when he was yanked down by the shirt to Zee's eye level.

"Listen here, buddy, my cousin may be the new guy and a bit of a geek, but he's OFF your bully list, you understand me? Try another stunt like that again and I'll pitch this ball straight into your gonads." She lifted the ball in question up then shoved it in his hand with a force that made him cough his breath. "Believe me I'm a good shot, you won't ever see it coming."

"Oh.. okay…" Sharpener wheezed out and watched Zee strut back with anger still stiffened in his shoulders. "Man...what's with this family?"

 _ **Yay! First Chapter up! I hope you guys like the start of the last installment of the Mis- series. Expect some major changes from the original DBZ storyline, I'm going completely off quota for this. Hope you'll enjoy and look forward to it all.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: Learning to Blend In.**_


	2. Learning to Blend In

_**Misguided Soul**_

 _ **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**_

 _ **Chapter 2: Learning to Blend In.**_

"So let me see if I've got this straight…" Gohan started as he watched Zee exchange things out of her locker. "The watch on your wrist helps to control how much force you use in everyday activities."

"Pretty much, after watching you and Goku fumble with it while in Super Saiyan form I decided it may be a good idea to monitor it myself. I can change it with voice command so if I suddenly need to be in battle I can let my power flow out freely. Otherwise it's like a conductor, it absorbs the excess energy and channels it back like a battery, it's a little shock to the system but it reminds me to hold back as much as possible."

"I see, that's pretty neat."

"I'll make you one, you should come over to capsule. If you're gonna be going to my school we need to work on your blending in skills." She closed the locker and took back the watch strapping it to her wrist again.

"I guess so, but I don't know why we've gotta hide it. Mom says-"

"I know what Chichi says, and that's not the case Gohan, believe me. It's not because we're odd, but because we're not human. At least not ALL human. We technically were never meant to be here, and as such we need to respect the way things are here. We can be proud of our saiyan heritage, but if we're gonna live amongst humans we have to live as humans do, with normality."

"I get it," Gohan smiled. "That does make a lot of sense. If people found out we're aliens it could cause some massive panic."

"Exactly, which is why we're just better off pretending around those that wouldn't understand. Frankly, in my opinion, Chichi is one of the ones that could have gone on without knowing, but I guess since she married Goku she had a right to know all that had happened." She stretched and put her hands behind her head leaning back on her locker. "Your mom doesn't understand that we are who we are. We can do our best to hide it when living amongst humans so we don't hurt anybody, but we've a right to practice saiyan life… fighting is just the tip of the iceberg. I've always wanted to learn more about Saiyan culture but mom won't talk about it with me."

"Why not? I would think Vega would be the first person to boast about the race she was once a princess of."

"She still is, Gohan. There are fewer of us but she's still Princess of all Saiyans, and I'm her first born, her heir, I've a right to know damn it!" She punched a locker, a low whistle escaping and she looked over her shoulder grunting at Sharpener.

"Save it for the Boxing Club, Zee. That locker's not gonna take much more of your abuse." He rapped a knuckle of the dented metal. Zee had to fight the smirk that wanted to slip on her lips. If Sharpener knew that that wasn't even a tenth of her strength doing that kinda damage, she imagined he'd be more scared than he had been on the baseball field.

"Yeah, about that, I'm not going today."

"Why not, you've never missed a day."

"I've got other responsibilities that need to be seen." She grabbed gohan by the shirt tucking his head under her arm and bruising her knuckles into his skull making him squirm. "Like this guy."

"Oh, are you gonna take him home in one of those fancy capsule ships?" Erasa wanted to know stepping up beside him. "That way he doesn't have to make that uber long trip all the way to the mountains by car?"

"Not exactly," Gohan grimaced and straightened his hair.

"Close enough though. Gohan's gonna be staying at Capsule with me awhile, make the transition easier. I get to take his smart ass home and get him settled." She waltzed over to Erasa smirking and clutching her chin gently. "Sorry Erasa, but you'll have to find another ride home today."

Erasa giggled at the flirt.

"That's okay, family comes first, I understand." She winked at Gohan.

"Hey, Erasa, I've got a open seat in my car. If the short stuff ain't going to club it isn't gonna be much fun."

"I'll beat on you next time, Sharpener." Zee shouted after him then shoved Gohan in the opposite direction.

"Stop your pushing, Zee, what's the hurry, you've got a motorcycle don't yah?" Gohan nearly stumbled as she pushed him out.

"We're being followed," She murmured sensing Videl's energy pattern lingering in the halls.

"Oh, right, what's Videl's deal? She's awfully suspicious."

"She's got it in your head that you're the gold fighter." Zee tossed him a helmet as they approached her bike. "She probably wants to see if you're gonna spring into action on the way home. She'll follow us all the way to capsule, she's so certain."

"What? Oh man," Gohan pushed the helmet on his face the orange helmet with the green viser hiding his face and the blush creeping up.

"Chill out, just don't go super saiyan." She straddled the bike and sent it revving. "Get on, Gohan."

"You were serious about taking me to capsule?" He got on the back, feeling a little silly being passenger for a change.

"Of course, I'm serious. If you're going to the same school as me I can't have you messing things up. I worked real hard to keep my identity away from the public and you could spoil the whole thing with your carelessness. I can't believe you told Erasa the truth about where you live!"

"Is that really such a bad thing, though?" Gohan leaned forward. He couldn't see past her helmet but he imagined her face looking hard and blank with wheels turning in that beautiful brain of hers.

"Yes, no… ugh… listen Gohan if you're gonna blend in you gotta learn to lie through your teeth."

"I hate lying, and I suck at it anyway." He remembered having to keep all those secrets during their parent's affair. It still left a sour taste in his mouth.

"So we'll just have to make some of the lies true. Why don't I go talk with your mom, get her to let you stay at Capsule for awhile. She and Yamcha will be busy with the new baby anyway, right?"

"That would be cool, but I don't think mom trusts you."

"No, but she knows how smart I am."

Gohan couldn't deny that. The whole reason that Chichi had let Xena stay an influence in his life was because of her natural knack for academics. When they pulled into the lot at capsule Gohan removed the helmet and rubbed his hair loose and watched Xena do the same, before taking a look around.

The large complex hadn't changed in the many years he'd known Bulma's family. There were always people buzzing about, robots rolling over the grounds doing chores, Mrs. Brief baking goodies in the kitchen, Dr. Briefs experimenting, or relaxing in the gardens with his pets. Radditz now occupied the Gravity room ¾ of the time and the other quarter he ate and slept. The man had been ruthless in his training regiment, wanting desperately to catch up to his brother and Vega.

"Do you still train with your dad?" Gohan wanted to know.

"Yes, until little Boxer is old enough to handle the gravity dad prefers to train with me or solo. He usually uses me as a grading curve for himself, feels if he pounds on me good enough he could figure out the extra push to reach mom and Goku's level."

"You're able to go Super Saiyan 2 now aren't you?"

"I am… and so can he."

"What? Really? That's awesome he's achieved so much in only seven years." Gohan laughed with pride. "I'm sure Vega will be happy to hear how his hard work has been paying off."

"Did you hit your head or something, Gohan? Mom doesn't care less about my father's rise in power. All she cares about now is raising the boys to beat you and Goten." She chuckled and changed the tone in her voice to mimic Vega. "None of my children will be weaker than some earthling spawn!"

"Yeah that sounds like something Vega would say. I just thought that she would be glad that the Saiyans that are left are rising in power. That she would be glad that Radditz is rising to the standards she and dad started."

"Hmmm… do you remember when we were first training to become Super Saiyans, Gohan? What my counterpart told you?" She turned to him, the memory flooding in of that wide empty room, the voices of each other echoing in their ears.

 _~The Past~_

 _Zee watched Gohan fail at his attempt at reaching the power again. His body slumping forward, but Xena stood strong and glowed like a candle beside him. He eyed her with a longing and jealousy. Zee saw it, pushed at it._

" _Do you see her, Gohan? Do you see what she's become, what she is? That is your goal. Look in her eyes, see the power in them, see the fire. What you lack, it's all in her."_

 _Gohan stared, long and hard his hands clenching into fists._

" _My mother spent years reaching for that… she didn't have the visual you have now, she didn't know what a super saiyan looked like, felt like, all she knew is that it was a level of power that she had to achieve. It was what she wanted, what she craved. She reached deep inside herself, nearly drove herself mad before finally attaining it."_

" _How did she attain it?" He asked weakly._

" _She stopped caring."_

" _What?" Gohan eyed Zee in a confused manner. "What do you mean?"_

" _When the saiyans are in a situation that looks hopeless, when everything is about to be taken, they in their last moments do their best to forget that they cared about anything at all, because in death you've eternity to mourn. Vega became a super saiyan because she needed to… in order to survive she stopped caring, and the need became reality. "_

 _~End of Flashback~_

"Yeah, that lesson still goes over my head." Gohan sighed.

"At the time I couldn't understand it either… but I figured it out. My mom had repeated a similar lesson over and over when we were training out in space. She taught me how to hide emotion, to hold back everything and show that we didn't care. It's because enemies use any source of emotion to gage your weaknesses. If you show that you feared to lose something, they'd make sure you'd lose it."

"So, what you're saying is-"

"What I'm saying is the more my mom cares about something the more desperate she is to hide it, so even if she were happy about it she'd never let him know it."

"Man, your mom is a complicated woman." Gohan rubbed the back of his head laughing. "No offense."

"None taken…" She punches in the code to her room and the doors slide open. She immediately sits at her lavish desk computer and starts punching some things in. She pulls out her scouter connecting it to the computer so her audio files of the day could download as well as her notes. "There's no way I can convince you to give up crime fighting is there?"

"When people need help I can't just sit back."

"I didn't think so… so I guess our best option is to make you a disguise."

"A disguise?"

Xena ignored his questioning tone and opened up a few files and a program up on her computer. She started putting together images of the saiyan uniforms Bulma had designed, but tweaked them, adding different colors and changing up the shapes a bit. She scowled and sat back in her chair glancing at him then back at the screen. "Hmmm… The body isn't the problem, it's your face… we need something to… ah I got it!"

She went back to work, knowing that she might be at it for a bit Gohan made himself comfortable on her bed and took a look around the room. Her style hadn't changed much over the years. She kept the room simple, neutral blues and grays to keep that futuristic flair that she was so fond of. He heard her murmuring and talking to herself which he couldn't help but grin at.

He looked at her again, hunched over the keyboard, eyes studying the screen as her mouse scrolled through options down a side window while the other displayed a full Saiyan suit on a manakin. The headpiece changed different styles and colors before finally resting on a viser that looked a little like the scouter but stretched over the entire front of his face. A helmet was added, but unlike the bulky orange one she'd given him to wear on her bike this one was sleek and shiny and black like his suit and came back at a point.

"Can't you make it a different color?" Gohan complained and earned a hiss from Bulla. "What? I'm not you I don't like all black. A little is fine but you gotta give me some color."

"Fine… but no orange, you're not a walking talking dragon ball."

"What about Blue?" He got up to lean in over her shoulder his breath on her neck making her stiffen and fidget. "Yeah.. yeah and a cape?"

"No capes!" She reached smacked him with her notebook making him back off and rub his forehead.

"Alright… ah yeah that's perfect! It looks like the Saiyan Suit but sleeker."

"That's what I was going for, same with the visor. I'll program it so it has all the same capabilities as mine so I'll be able to share my notes and stuff with you in case you miss any classes."

"That's great… but how am I gonna put all that on?"

"With this…" She held up a watch identical to hers and plugged in a cord downloading the program and suit into it. "I'll show you how to use it, but basically it works like a capsule. You push a button and the clothes will just appear on your body. I debated on making one for myself for gym, but I'll save it for a last resort." She finished the download and started some modifications on it.

"You're going through a lot of trouble to hide all this. Your gender, your heritage… why bother going to school at all?" Gohan was curious and he sat on the bed staring. He watched her hands pause on her work and saw her sigh.

"I just… wanted to make some friends."

"You can make friends being yourself though, can't you? Why hide who you are?"

"I'm not hiding, I'm…" She sighed and set down the watch and turned her chair around. "Listen Gohan, for as long as I can remember it's only ever been the two of us. Anytime either of us have tried making friends our own age we've freaked them out in some way. The way we look, the way we fight, just the way we live is strange to most people on this planet. We're two people surrounded by extraordinary circumstances, You the home-schooled country boy who has been to space, fought against androids and aliens, and can take a punch better than any UFC fighter on the planet, and me the science prodigy who by the age of 13 was already coming up with ground breaking technology and inventions, and living with one of the richest families in the world . That's not counting them knowing that our heritage or our strange family interludes.

"I guess that is strange compared to the other people here on Earth."

"I know it sucks Gohan, and believe me I'd like to be accepted as much as you do, but we can't just blurt it out to every living soul we wanna make friends with. I don't know about you but I have to have complete trust in the person I share my secrets with."

"Yeah, yeah you're right." Gohan smiled again and stood up. "So starting tomorrow we begin our new life as normal Earth citizens."

"I will be normal...YOU are gonna be playing part time Super Hero." She handed him the watch, their fingers brushing, and eyes meeting. "Got a name for yourself?"

He takes it, straps it on and presses the button. In the suit he felt very much the way he did in the Saiyan armor.. Strong, and fierce and proud. "Yeah… I am…. The Great SAIYAMAN!"

 _ **Okay because FFN doesn't allow links to be shared I've decided to create a Facebook page so that it's easier to communicate with me on all varying topics. This will include the link to lemon chapters, any updates and ideas I've got floating around, as well as allow me to interact with you my readers and give you guys a bit of insight on what's been going on behind the scenes and such. You'll also be able to check out updates from my alternate pen name and see some of the stories and fanart that have given ME inspiration as well.**_

 _ **To find me on Facebook just search for Bri's Fanfiction If you see a picture of FemGoku being Kissed by Vegeta, that's me!**_

 _ **Hope this helps!**_

 _ **Next Chapter: Super Saiyan Secrets**_


	3. Super Saiyan Secrets

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 3:** **Super Saiyan Secrets**

Mt. Paos had always been home. Goku's childhood home, and now the home he shared with his wife Vega, and three of their sons. Next to Gohan, Tarble was the eldest of the brood, just turned 8 and was most like his mother. Goten was a year younger and though he wasn't Vega's child, she treated him as such. He was a saiyan, half saiyan, but still saiyan and that was good enough for her. Finally there was Bardock, the youngest by half a year who carried the looks of the Son family with that spiky mass of hair and bore a more striking resemblance to his grandfather who'd been a little more harsh in the eyes and snarky in attitude.

"I haven't been up here in nearly two years." Xena mentioned as the two of them touched down on the old road. It was quiet and peaceful, the sights and sounds of nature buzzing round their heads.

"I come up here occasionally but not as often as I should. It's about time, don'tcha think?" Gohan looked back at her and swung an arm round her shoulders. "About time that we came up together?"

Xena looked down at her attire. She'd ditched the leather biker look and stuck to jeans and a tank. She had her training gear in a capsule in her back pocket just in case her mother wanted to see what she was made of. Which she nearly always did.

"I guess you're right. Whoa!" The ground under their feet rumbled as the silence was pierced by a sudden boom of a Kamehameha. The bright blue light soared up from the back of the house and up to the sky where it pushed past clouds and disappeared into the wide open blue.

"Looks my dad is in top form this morning." Gohan held Xena close his hands on her shoulders to keep her steady as they both looked up where the ball of light has vanished.

Xena noticed the embrace and she cleared her throat. "Gohan, mind letting go of me?"

"Huh?" Gohan looked down and broke away rubbing the back of his head. "Sorry about that."

"Don't mention it." She dusted herself off. "Really, just don't. Are you sure you wanna do this? Telling Mom and Goku just what we've been doing these past few weeks?"

"Yeah, I think it'd be for the better. I mean you told your dad I was staying with you and he didn't seem to mind much."

"When my father doesn't say anything it usually just means it's not worth his time." She gave a shrug. "Still he needed to know because he lives there and seeing you on more than one occasion without explanation would piss him off."

"Right… well I just think it's better all around." The two of them walked around the house… and into a war zone. Xena veered off to the left to avoid getting hit in the head from a stray ball of light. Their three younger brothers were in a free for all battle, each getting their own kicks and punches in on the other… but from the way it looked Bardock and Goten were pushing up on the eldest Tarble who had the advantage of age and experience.

"Mind the house, you three!" Vega shouted from the doorway, still in training gear and wiping sweat from the brow. "You wouldn't want to sleep on the cold ground like last time!"

"Ah let them be, Vega." Goku smoothed a hand on her shoulder with a sandwich in the other. "They're all in good control."

"So says the man who blew off the roof less than a month ago?" Vega narrowed her eyes on him and to avoid answering her retort Goku shoved the rest of his sandwich into his mouth looking innocent.

They made quite a picture, Xena thought. Though she and Gohan would always be welcomed, she knew that Gohan felt as she did when it came to blending into the new family. They felt like outsiders. It wasn't anything on Goku and Vega's part but on theirs. Some things just didn't click… She and Gohan had always been close, a pair, a duo, a team. They weren't quite ready to welcome the younger siblings in on such a bond.

There was a loud buzzing whizz as the two younger brothers careened into each other and fell to the ground leaving Tarble the undisputed champion. "And you're beat!" Tarble announced with a Vegeta Family Smirk.

"Could you be any more cocky?" Xena shouted up catching the attention of the entire family.

"Xena!" Tarble shouted and zipped by to launch himself at her. She caught him and held on with an affection she hadn't felt in years. Perhaps she held on a few seconds longer than she meant to, but oh well, her pride would recover.

"Gohan! Xena!" Goten and Bardock ran to them each taking one of Gohan's legs into a hug. He rubbed a hand over their matching spiky heads.

"Hey you two are looking good." Gohan said with a smile. "You almost had him."

"Almost isn't good enough." Vega sniffed but then smiled and walked with Goku at her side to pry the children away and get greetings of their own. Vega didn't hug her daughter, but instead took her face in her hands and looked deep into them. With an approving nod she then wrapped her arms around the girl. "You'll do."

"Mom…" Xena closed her eyes and lay her forehead down a minute then pulled back keeping her chin up and proud. Gohan and Goku shared big manly hugs before they switched. Xena let herself be enveloped into Goku's big strong arms. Radditz may have been her father by blood and birth… but Goku was her father by heart.

"You're both looking well." Goku commented and pulled back to take a good look at her up and down. "You cut your hair. It looks great."

"Thanks, Kakarott." Xena smirked. "When I need your opinion on fashion statements I'll be sure to give you a ring." She punched his shoulder affectionately and picked up Bardock swinging him up to smooch his cheek which he fussed and wriggled.

"Yuck! Gross! Why do girls gotta get all kissy kissy?"

"We do it to make boys squirm…" Xena commented and tickled his ribs before giving Goten the same treatment which he desperately tried to run away from.

"So…" Goku eyed Xena as she chased Goten around the back yard with bardock and Tarble in hot pursuit. "To what do we owe the visit?"

"Well I just started going to a public high school. I'm finishing out senior year at Orange Star and I wanted to let you guys know I've temporarily moved to capsule Corps to make the commute easier." Gohan explained over the squeals and shouts of his siblings.

"Bulma's got plenty of room to accomodate you," Vega commented. "How did Chichi take the news?"

"Well…" Gohan rubbed the back of his head with a wince. "She wasn't happy at first… but when I explained all the good things about it and how Xena's gonna use her connections at the college to help me become a scholar she eventually caved. Then she cried and cried and Yamcha had to put her to bed."

"Chichi's always been the emotional sort, probably even more so now that she has a baby on the way." Goku pat his son's shoulder. "I'm proud of you Gohan. I know you didn't always enjoy the studying, but it means a lot to your mother."

"I know, and it means a lot to me now too. Now that there's peace I can do anything I want but… school has always been the focus point of my life aside from fighting. However this time I want to do it on my terms. I wanted to go to school with kids my own age, make friends and become a part of something bigger, yah know?"

"Xena was very much the same way," Vega gave a nod. "She wanted to become more invested in life here on Earth, always wanting to learn. It amazes me some days just how big of a brain she has, she'd put Bulma's to shame." Not that Vega would ever mention that to her long time friend.

"Anyway we wanted to tell you about it just in case you guys ever wanted to come visit. It's been a long time since all of us have been together and that's mostly our fault. We're sorry about that." Gohan admitted with his head hung a bit.

"Don't be sorry, Gohan." Goku comforted with a hand on his son's shoulder. He glanced back at Xena who had Goten pinned to the ground and was now torturing him with kisses while Tarble and Bardock tried to yank her off. "No matter how far apart we are, we're still family. You and Xena are our eldest children, and it was time for you guys to find your own way in the world rather than following our examples."

"Thanks dad…"

"I've got cooties!" Goten shuddered as he twitched and rubbed his hands over his face with a whine. "Get em off me! Get em off me!"

"Serves yah right!" Xena wiped her mouth in triumph and raised her hands up. "Undefeated champion!"

Goten ran around and hid behind vega only to be picked up by the scruff and pushed back out.

"Goten You're a warrior, a son of the mighty Kakarott. Act like one. You're not gonna let a little thing like your sister's cooties defeat you in battle are you?" Vega crossed her arms frowning down at the squirming boy.

"No… I guess not." He frowned and then his eyes sharpened and he whirled back on Xena. Xena held up her hands laughing and mocked being scared.

"Oh I'm in trouble now."

"Just you wait…" Vega murmured and stared at Goten as he planted himself firmly in front of his cousin by blood, sister by marriage, and with a shout sent his ki sparking with life. Vega held a hand to the house as if to steady it from Goten's power and she watched Xena's face as the son of Kakarott went gold aflame.

"Goten!" This from Gohan who oggled. "You're a...a Super Saiyan!"

"Awesome job!" Xena said proudly and jumped from the rock she'd used to pedestal herself above the others. "How long did it take you to manage that little- WHOA!" She barely managed to dodge a fist as Goten came at her with revenge in his eyes.

The little guy was fast, almost dizzying as he flew around her head punching and kicking trying to catch her off guard. The kid was rash but relentless with his moves. Great potential there, but she saw why Tarble had the upper hand in the previous bout. She herself had had a hand in dealing with Tarble's training, sparring with him, making sure he learned about moderation, and control.

She caught his hand and twirled him around sending him skirting to the ground. "Sorry kid," She went Super and stood over him. "You're about ten years too early to try and take me on."

Goten sat in the dirt his lips in a firm pout as he saw the girl stand tall over him. Gohan felt for his lil brother. Once upon a time he'd been in very much the same position.

"I'm glad to see you've kept up with your training." Vega pointed out. "The boys are a lil wild yet, but they're advanced for their age."

"I'll say," Gohan put in. "Those three will be stronger than us if we don't watch it, Zee."

"Stronger than you, anyway." Xena powered down and flicked bangs out of her face. "You've been hitting the books more than anything else."

"Well you do have a point." Gohan hung his head. "I guess I just haven't had much incentive to do any training."

"I know these are peaceful times, Gohan." Goku pat a hand on his back. "You gotta remember though that peace is always temporary. Sooner or later something's bound to stir things up and we have to be ready. That's why Vega and I decided to train the boys for at least 8 hours everyday."

"EIght hours?" Gohan groaned and ran a and through his hair frowning. "Aww man I really have some catching up to do."

"You're not a push over, Gohan, but you're not as strong as you were." Xena pointed out. "Fighting bank robbers, and other human criminals isn't exactly stretching your muscles."

"Huh? Bank Robbers?" Goku looked at his son confused. "What does she mean by that?"

"I'll show you." Gohan beamed now and took center stage. He pressed fingers to the watch on his wrist. The great Saiyaman appeared with flourish and he posed and called out with what he considered a deep authoritative voice.

"Evil beware! For I am Justice, I am Truth, I am The Great Saiyaman!"

Xena slapped a hand over her face from embarrassment. While Goten and Bardock got a real kick out of it Tarble and Vega stared unimpressed and shaking their heads. All Goku could do was stifle the laughter that wanted to roll out from his belly.

"Oh, Brother." Was all Xena could say.

~Capsule Corps~

Videl was annoyed. It was bad enough she'd yet to reach the level of training she'd been wanting for the upcoming tournament, but the whole Gold Fighter/Great Saiyaman mystery still puzzled her. Just what was the guy's angle. Was he really a man seeking justice? Or was he a fool seeking publicity? Either way he was stealing her limelight and the practice she needed.

Her first and only suspect had been Gohan, he always seemed to be conveniently absent whenever Saiyaman appeared, and he'd matched the description witnesses gave her of the Gold Fighter. However… she was forced to admit he didn't exactly match the criteria. The guy couldn't fight. The one time he had tried to defend himself against some thugs he'd taken a hit right in the face, hadn't even tried to block it.

Now she was back at square one…

She'd come to see Zee, but hoped that Gohan was around too. She hadn't seen much of either of them after school since those first few days. It was time she apologized, she realized. Time she gave up the search and just let it go. I mean, a nerd like Gohan couldn't possibly be the Great Saiyaman.

She rang the doorbell shuffling the books in her arms that she was returning to Zee. She spotted Bulma and gave a wave. "Hi Bulma."

"Oh hello Videl. I'm sorry but Zee's not here. He and Gohan went to go visit with their parents."

"All the way up in Mt. Paos?" Videl frowned and sighed. "Dang I was hoping to talk to him. Oh well could you just give him these books back for me? They really helped me out."

"I'll do that… would you like to come inside for awhile? My mom just put on some tea and cakes."

"That sounds delicious but I really should…" At the sounds behind her Videl looked back just in time to see Gohan and Xena touchdown the two of them too enthralled in their current debate to realize the mistake they made.

"I don't see what the big deal is? Bardock and Goten got a kick out of it." Gohan frowned crossing his arms defiantly at Xena's distaste in his decision to show off Saiyaman. She was back in her "Zee" attire, her short hair brushed back from her forehead with a careless rake of her fingers. She was sweaty, and bruised from her lil bout with her mother in which the woman had beaten her disapproval into her daughter. It made her feel both embarrassed and invigorated at the same time.

"They're little kids, Gohan." She grabbed his watch pushing the button and making his costume pop on. "You're a walking talking action figure to them! Tarble at least had enough maturity and sense to see through the ridiculousness."

"You're the one who made the outfit! You're the one who talked me into Saiyaman so if it's ridiculous it was your idea!"

"You're the great Saiyaman!?" Videl's voice punched the air making them both freeze and their heads whirl in the direction of the door.

Bulma held her head shaking it as Videl stood there furious and shocked all at the same time. Xena cursed under her breath and raked her fingers through her hair again.

"Busted."

"Oh man," Gohan groaned and held his head. "Not even a month and the secret identity of the great Saiyaman has become a public spectacle."

"I wouldn't say it's a public spectacle seeing as I'm the only one who knows now…" She looks over her shoulder as Bulma retreated inside. "I had my suspicions about you Gohan, but Zee… I can't believe you were in on this?"

"All I did was make a stupid costume…" Zee muttered and tried to walk past Videl and got a fist in the gut for her trouble. It didn't hurt, but it damn sure annoyed her. She turned her cool black eyes on her and sneered. "Videl…"

"Don't take that tone with me, you've been training him! You taught him to fly didn't you?"

"Actually our parents taught us that little maneuver when we were kids." She corrected through gritted teeth.

"Teach me!" Videl insisted. "Teach me to fly!" She looked between both Zee and Gohan. "If you don't I'll go public with this whole Saiyaman. Ah, and the gold fighter. You're the gold fighter too aren't you Gohan?"

"No, no, no just Saiyaman!" Gohan insisted holding up his hands defensively.

"Your parents taught you to fly… Goku and Vega… Goku was a former Tournament participant back in the old days before my dad became champion. His last tournament he suddenly disappeared with another contestant in pursuit of a woman who had suddenly come crash landing into the ring and then flew off."

"That would be my mother," Zee replied. "She has a flair for grand entrances."

"This is awesome… fighting really is in your blood. You have to participate in the tournament now! Both of you do!" She demanded. "I'm making it part of the deal. I'll keep quiet about Saiyaman and you two teach me to fly and then show me what you got in the ring. Deal?"

Xena was all set to deny her. She had no desire to make an idiot of her closest friend in the ring… but she saw the look on Gohan's face, and she gave a heavy sigh and rubbed the bridge of her nose.

"If we do this, Videl. I don't want any complaints on the outcome of the tournament."

"No arguments from me. I don't want you guys to hold back. Come at me with everything you've got!" She held out a hand to her. Xena stared at it a long while, mentally thinking that if they did Videl would need more than an on-site EMT to patch the wounds. "Fine… but I'm not teaching you to fly. I'll leave that to captain Speechless over there." She jerked a thumb behind her at Gohan. "He's the tutor, not me."

"That's fine by me." She folded her arms smirking at Gohan. "When do we start?"

 _ **I debated on including the blackmail date and the interaction of Videl and Saiyaman, but thought better on it. It was never my favorite part of the series and I'd prefer a more subtle interaction.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: Past Regrets**_


	4. Past Regrets

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 4: Past Regrets**

"I can't believe you threw me under the bus!" Gohan complained to Xena as he watched her at the computer. He glanced at his watch rubbing his wrist nervously when he didn't get a response from her. "I mean really Xena, you get along with her way better than I do."

"I don't train with humans, Gohan. Not the way Videl wants me to anyway. I play at Boxing Club, give pointers, but I don't fight, I don't dip their fingers into managing energy and flight. You're more patient, and better suited to show her want she wants and needs."

"What are we gonna do about the tournament? She wants us both to participate. What if we have to go against her father? Do you know what will happen when the Earth's mightiest hero gets decked by a high school student?"

"He'll play it off as finding a worthy successor to his lineage and offer to take you up as a student, then in private beg you to either teach him, or to play it off for him." Xena said with a grunt. "Personally I'd love the chance to make the bastard grovel after the things he did with Cell. Our parents died protecting this planet and that bastard got rich off their blood!"

Gohan huffed out a breath. He had to admit she had a point. "Our parents wouldn't have wanted the attention anyway. They like their life in the mountains, you saw how happy they are. It was for the better."

"Tch…" She pushed back from the computer swiveling in her chair to narrow her eyes on him. "You're going to teach her, Gohan… and I expect you to do some extra training while you're about it. I want a good fight when we hit the ring."

"Maybe we won't have to fight each other." Gohan rubbed the back of his head grinning.

"Gohan we're two super saiyans participating in a tournament full of humans. Who could possibly rival us?"

"I could!" Radditz sneered from the doorway leaning on the jamb.

"Dad? You're going to participate in the World Martial Arts Tournament?" The idea caused a stirring of excitement deep in her belly. Radditz caught the fire in his daughter's eyes and gave a quick smirk.

"You damn right I am… and you'd best call your mother and Kakarott and make sure they participate as well." He gripped his hand into a fist. "I've been training non stop for a chance at redemption. I'm going to beat my brother once and for all!"

Gohan suddenly got an image of the tournament grounds caught up in flames and rapidly paled.

"You sure this is a good idea?"

"Why the hell not?" Xena whirled around. "Dad may look like a brute but he's not an idiot. He'll play by the rules, won't you?" She gave a warning glance to her old man. "Otherwise I don't think you'll get Kakarott on board."

"Fine… I'll play to the rules of your pathetic human tournament. I'll still have the advantage." He turned and exited. Suddenly fired up Xena skidded her chair along the floor and picked up a phone to dial their parent's number. "Ooh I bet the boys will love to participate as well. Thsi is gonna be awesome. Gohan why don't you go fly off and see if Krillin and Piccolo wanna join in as well?"

"Now that's a good idea…" Gohan agreed.

"Don't forget Videl's lesson!" She shouted after him then turned into the receiver to deliver the news to Goku who cheerfully answered the phone.

~A few days later~

Gohan stood in the big open field surrounded by his siblings. Xena stood beside him in training gear that reminded him of a male version of her mother. Videl was due to meet them there so her full on Zee persona was in place. The deep royal blue had sleeves that stopped mid bicep and tight black biker gloves that protected the knuckles. The pants she wore were padded on the thigh and had a cup over the crotch which should have been used to protect male genitalia but was stuffed with a sock instead.

"She's so slow!" Goten complained and shifted his weight from toe to toe in impatience. "Can't we start without her? The rest of us know how to fly!"

"That may be, Bro, but I did make a promise. I told her we wouldn't start til she got here…. Ah there she is!" He pointed upward and all heads turned to see a capsule plane lowering to land. Videl jumped out and tightened the tie on her pigtail and looked around with a deep frown.

"What's with all the kids?" She asked suspiciously. "Did you get caught babysitting."

"They're mine." Zee said calmly rubbing knuckles casually against the shirt. The look on Videl's face made her smirk. "My brothers… Videl. Geez you're easy. This is Goten, Bardock, and Tarble." She pulled the eldest in by the neck and rubbed her knuckles into his head making him squirm.

"They're here to train also. Don't worry, you and Gohan go have your flight training while the trio and I do some exercises. You can join us once you're done." She shoved Tarble out and caught the fist he threw at her. "Nice try, little man… come on, let's do some laps. Hup to it! GO!" She shot off a ki blast at their feet making them jump and run across the tall grass.

Videl's eyes went wide at the sight of the blasting light and she turned to Gohan mouth wide opened. "Wha… how… she does tricks?"

"Hoo boy!" Gohan slapped a palm to his cheek. "This is gonna take awhile."

It actually took several hours… He managed to calm Videl down, get her to take a meditative state with him on the grass so he could show her how to pull energy from her body and use it. Every once in awhile she'd get distracted by the thundering sounds of fists and blasts off in the distance where the other four had gone off to train.

"Don't pay attention to them Videl. Focus on me…" Gohan risked a touch and turned her face so that their eyes met and he immediately pulled back his hands so she wouldn't get the wrong idea. "There… now we've gotten you to pull the energy… now it's time to use it. Now let's start from the beginning. Feel the energy in your stomach and slowly bring it out…. Relax your muscles."

Videl scowled down at her feet her eyes narrowed in concentration as she fought to relax, to ease the power out of her. She felt it warm, and spread pushing out and causing a tunnel of wind to gust up her twin tails. Her body slowly rose her feet raising from the ground and floating a few inches… then a few feet.

Gohan let out a shout of praise.

"Yes! That's it, you're doing it!"

"Shh! Gohan, I'm trying to concentrate!" Videl glared at him making him clamp his hand over his mouth. Slowly Videl lowered to the ground and then turned those cool blue eyes on his face. Gohan waited a beat then let the praise flow out.

"That's incredible, Videl. I've never known anyone who learned to fly so quickly."

"Is that a fact?" Videl turned her eyes up to the sky. In the distance the two could just make out the scatter of kids playing tag in the air, the youngest one was barely five and had the speed of a hyper jet.

"Well my brothers are an exception they've been controlling their energy since they were born, and it's in their blood and stuff." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"I want a closer look at what they're doing." She starts walking in that direction but Gohan took her shoulder.

"No, wait, it's probably not a good idea. My brothers can get kinda careless when it comes to their energy. Besides it looks like it's getting late, you should probably start heading home."

"I suppose you do have a point, but I'll be back tomorrow." Videl said firmly turning up her nose.

"Huh? Why? I taught you how to fly, now all you need is a little private practice,"

"I want to learn more about this energy thing…" Her eyes go harsh. "Or is my presence a burden on you?" She said with some spite.

"No, no, of course not!" Gohan let out a nervous laugh.

"Good, it's settled then." Videl opened her capsule and headed toward the plane. Gohan admired her a moment. God she was so strong, so skilled. With the right kind of training she could be as strong as Krillin and the other humans in the Z fighters. In some ways… hell a lot of ways she reminded him of Xena. She was a spitfire, tougher than nails, and still so beautiful. He relaxed a moment staring at her back as she opened the door to the plane.

"Hey Videl…" He caught her before she climbed in. She turned and his thoughts lingered on the similarities between her and Xena. "I was thinking about your hair. It might be better short."

Videl looked at her twin tails running her fingers through it but then smiled and blushed a little. "You mean you like short hair, on girl's Gohan?"

He thought of Xena… She had had both long and short hair… if he had to choose…

"Yeah, I do… i mean girls look nice with any hairstyle but… for a fighter like you, short would be best."

He saw pleasure bloom on Videl's face and she walked from the plane and over to him. Leaning up on her toes she gave his cheek a kiss which had him blushing and jumping back a few feet.

"W-What was that?"

"Oh, you know…" Videl winked. "Just being friendly. See yah later, Gohan." She jogged back to the plane and took off.

Zee stared dumbstruck from the air her eyes full of both confusion and fury. When Videl's plane zipped off she slammed down to the ground creating a small crater around her feet and she hissed at Gohan, the ends of her spiking, her temper threatening to send her into super saiyan mode.

"What the hell was that!?" She clenched her fists on either side of her.

"That's what I asked… she said she was just being friendly."

"What the hell did you say to her? What did you two do while I was off with the midgets? Did you actually train her or did you just make goo goo eyes at each other?!" Her eyes started to turn teal and had Gohan taking another cautious step back.

"I did teach her to fly, she floated, and why are you so mad? You're the one who put me in this position to begin with remember?"

"I didn't tell you to kiss her!"

"I didn't kiss her she kissed me!" Gohan said defensively. "And again why the hell are you angry about it, it was just a kiss."

"Oh shut up! You're such an idiot, Gohan!" She floated up and shot off her trail going gold mid-flight.

Gohan just stared dumbstruck, his eyes wide his emotions raging and confusion all at the root of it. Goten floated down casually as his brother tackled each other to the ground. "What was she all upset about?"

"I don't… KNOW!" Gohan held his head and fell to his knees. He gave up, he just plain gave up. Girls were just too complicated to figure out.

~Two days later Capsule Corps~

She'd overreacted, Xena thought as she did sit ups in the gravity room while her father did one finger push ups. She had to cool off for two days to see it, but she knew she'd over reacted. Gohan was just like his father, completely oblivious to the female tells. What was worse was that he was still oblivious to her own feelings for him.

She was his cousin, she kept reminded herself. Family, blood ties… but her mother and father had both told her that marrying into family, such as cousin to cousin had been quite common on Vegeta, due to need for elite breeding and class. So she marked it up to the stupid Saiyan blood for what she was feeling.

He was also a Saiyan… a saiyan close to her age, and the proper age for breeding. It was all just body chemistry, all instinct that had her wanting, had her aching… and had her dreaming of herself and Gohan in those steamy situations since she'd been 14. Hadn't she distanced herself from him and the family because of those silly emotions? Obvious four years apart had done little to settle them. She'd have to find a way to get it out of her system and just move on.

At one thousand push ups she stopped and just lay there a moment, the increased weight not even bothering her anymore and she grumbled and rolled onto her belly to start the same push ups her dad was doing… then paused.

"Hey Dad."

"What is it?" Radditz grunted through his teeth.

"How come you decided to have sex with Bulma?"

Radditz slipped, his chin smacking against the ground making him roll over and hold it and snarl.

"Damn it, Fuck! Where the hell had that question come from?" Still holding the sore spot he turned his dark eyes to hers. She paused her push ups a moment, staring at the ground before bending herself up on the knee.

"Just answer the question, old man."

He cursed some more, rolling over again to sit up in the same position.

"I did it because I wanted to. What other reason is there?"

"You always do what you want, no matter the consequence?"

"Yes, I helped conceived you didn't I?" Radditz smirked.

"Ha-ha, very funny. I'm serious, Dad. What made you make those moves?"

"Truth be told she was the one who made the moves, I just responded the way any sane man responds to a flirtation from a beautiful woman." He stood and retightened his gloves.. His hand paused on the straps and he gave a sigh. "If you really want to know, I did it to get over your mother."

"Mom?"

"Once saiyans are mated for life, that's it. There's no redos or second chances, they're the ones. I should have known your mother wasn't mine when she held me off for as long as she did. I couldn't imagine her with Nappa, and at the time I thought we were the only ones left and if either of us could have her I wanted it to be me. Come to find she preferred my brother for such a thing."

"She cares about you though… you know that right?

"Don't get mushy on me girl."

"I'm totally serious dad… she held off Kakarott for a long time too because she had a hard time forgetting about you. The two of you are complete opposites in personality, you're rough and ready, and he's patient and sweet but the fact that you two are brothers really showed through, whether in looks or… just overall familiarity. I overheard her say that the two of you feel very similar, and she would dream very vividly of both of you kinda meshing together confusing her, stirring her up."

Radditz stayed silent for a good long while. The thought of Vega being any kind of messed up or stirred up was a bit too wild to believe… but then again the Vega he knew now was different than the Vega he knew then. Earth had softened her… which wasn't necessarily a bad thing. She was still strong, competitive, feisty… but she held the value of family and those she cared about more openly, showed more affection. In a way it had affected him as well. He had a daughter, and now a son because he had allowed himself to slip into this world, allowed himself to blend.

"Why do you want to know about all this?" He finally asked.

"I was thinking of sex and it kinda just popped into my head to ask you." She admitted.

"Who's ass do I have to kick?" he said with a warning growl.

"No one's, yet." She stood up and stretched her arms out. "I was thinking it was about time I had the experience… and who I should try it out on."

"Don't be in such a hurry girl. No human could ever match you."

"In that case, I'm doomed." She dragged out the 'oo' sound to make it more dramatic. "I'll be a virgin forever." She gave an exaggerated sigh.

"Very funny, fine if you really want my advice on such matters then let me make one thing clear." He holds up a finger. "Don't go into this half assed. You want sex, be sure you pick someone who is gonna do it right, who will take you on, challenge you."

"Challenge me, huh?" She thought about it, her eyes getting a sudden glint and she let the smirk slowly form. "Alright… thanks dad."

"Just be forewarned if he gets you pregnant I'm kicking his ass from here to otherworld!"

Xena rolled her eyes.

"Yes, dad."

~Later~

The damn girl was too brazen for her own good. Radditz thought as he changed out of his training gear. He tossed on a pair of jeans and a black tank. His once thick mane of hair had been tamed to shoulder length which suited him fine, at least he wasn't carrying the annoying weight of it around. Damn he was hungry, he'll have to track down the blue haired harpy and get a meal out of her. All this talk about sex was stirring him up much as before… and made him think too much of the past.

Vega had missed him?

He thought he'd gotten over the woman… but once you loved a princess it was hard to settle for less. Bulma, oh he knew the woman's name. Like Vega she had the presence of royalty… not the cool and proud stature that Vega had, but a sort of command presence that demanded attention.

The first time they'd had sex, made that connection, had been a spur of the moment, and surprisingly completely her idea. She'd strolled in, started a conversation that eventually led to affection, and a bit of annoyance. She'd stroked his arm, his face, telling him he could stay with her as long as he wanted and needed.

It was a move that had taken him seconds to respond. Going with impulse he'd kissed her, tasted a human female for the first time… and by god it had been sublime. He wasn't satisfied with just a taste after that, he found himself wanting more, needing more. In the end they too had conceived a child, and somehow in a strange way had formed a family, and he had quietly become quite fond of them.

He stood in the doorway of the kitchen watching his strange family now. Xena had changed and was sitting at the table in a lounged position. Bulma at the stove flipping over thick meat patties that had the hunger in his belly roaring again… and there in his high chair sat his son. The boy was only two and he had the satisfaction of seeing himself and the mother blended in his looks. The hair was a dark blue nearly black color that he imagined would lighten as he got older. The eyes Saiyan black and laughing as Xena made faces at him.

Something besides hunger clutched in his belly and he found himself walking to the kitchen, past his children and straight to the woman who had turned his life upside down. He caged her hips in his hands, her petite waist just fitting into the palms, and he placed a kiss at the nape of her neck.

"I'm hungry, woman."

Bulma, smiling from the mix of affectionate touch and rude mannerisms, turned her head to look back at him.

"Lunch is almost ready, have a seat Radditz and I'll get you settled."

He nodded but then whispered in her ear with a devilish grin.

"That wasn't the hungry I was in reference to."

With a pat on the ass he pulled back and took a seat the table, smirking at the now flushed woman. No, Bulma wasn't the raven haired Saiyan princess, and no his children weren't natural born elites serving in the army with pride and power… but all things considered Radditz considered himself a very lucky man.

 _ **I know Radditz is a bit ooc but I tried to fit as much of his saiyan attributes into the mix. I hope you guys enjoyed the combination and the chapter.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: Countdown to the Tournament**_


	5. Countdown to the Tournament

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 5: Countdown to the Tournament**

Her father had given Xena a kind of perspective she needed to push through the frustrations revolving around herself and the attraction she had towards Gohan. Her father had wanted a woman he could no longer have, and took his frustrations out on another, someone who, according to him, had challenged him and could also stir things up in him.

From what Xena saw he and Bulma made a great package. So perhaps it was best to let herself find a human who could stir something and who would be challenging. Maybe not physically, but mentally, someone smart and sharp tongued, someone who appreciated her abilities and mind as well as rivalled them.

It would be like finding a needle in a haystack, she concluded on a pout. Worse she would have to reveal her true identity, put down the "Zee" disguise and show the female Xena hiding underneath. It couldn't be as bad as she was making it out to be. Surely all her friends would understand… the boys might be a little weirded out from it, but the girls she was sure would take it alright, Erasa in particular.

With that in mind she decided to go to school. Training could hold off til afterward, and neither Videl nor Gohan would be there since they were off having flight training. She pulled up to the school removing her helmet and running fingers through the spiky mess of hair to keep it from flattening from the helmet. She spotted Erasa and Sharpener at the front of the school.

Sharpener… now there was a thought. He was her closest human friend, a male… and despite his cockiness and vanity was a good person. He admired strength, and skill, and was handsome to be sure.

She turned her eyes to Gary who strolled up next to them and started a chat. Here was Sharpener's opposite. A geek through and through, all brain with little charisma or looks. He wasn't ugly, just… not physically appealing. Still he was smart, and she liked smarts in a guy.

While Xena made her silent analysis Erasa's eyes trailed off from Sharpener and spotted her. Her face lit up and she broke through the two to run over. "Zee! Hey it's been a long time, where have you been?" She ran up hugging Xena while she was still straddling the bike.

"Sorry, Erasa…" She offered a confident smile. "I had some things to work out. Been training with up in the mountains." She dismounted the bike and pulled out her school gear. Erasa immediately locked onto her arm and walked with her.

"Hey, short stuff, about time you showed up." Sharpener teased and held out his hand. Xena slapped palms with him.

"Hey blondie, yeah I've been training, what about you? Getting flabby without me there holding yer ankles?"

"Very funny… where's your cousin at?" He scanned around. "The two of you have been stuck together like glue since he got here."

"Funny you should mention that… Videl somehow talked him into training with her. Something about him getting punched in the face and him needing to learn to protect himself." There, she thought, simple enough and it wasn't a full faced lie.

"Ha! That sounds like him." Gary laughed and earned a glare from Zee. Getting off the bike she set her watch to a low setting just in case she decided to punch him square in the face.

"Ah Gohan may be a geek but I bet you he can take a punch a whole lot better than you can." Sharpner sneered. "I saw that punch in the face, the guy didn't even have a bruise or a bloody lip and the man who punched him had to be twice his size. He could use the training."

Mood improved Zee's shoulders relaxed and she gave him a light punch in the shoulder, he saw him flinch a bit but to his credit didn't move to rub the ache out of it. "How come you're not participating in the tournament Sharpner? You're pretty good in a fight."

"Pretty good doesn't mean diddly squat when it comes to the martial arts tournament. I'm good but Mr. Satan's got that whole tournament wrapped up in a nice little ball."

"Bet you a 1000 zeni Videl, or someone stronger will knock him off his throne." Zee challenged with a smirk.

"You're on!" Sharpner reached out his hand and slapped palms with her. Zee took a moment, holding his hand probably a little longer than she should, her deep black eyes scanning his face. He shifted uncomfortably, slowly letting go and rubbing his palm on the back of his jeans.

"Anyway, I'm heading to class." He quickly backed up and retreated. Erasa, normally oblivious to Zee's mind, looked carefully between Zee and Sharpner and leaned in close.

"What was that about? Why were you looking at him like that?" Erasa whispered not wanting to give Gary a chance to goad.

"Like what?" Zee turned to face her and wrapped a casual arm over her shoulder. She shifted uncomfortably in it.

"Like he was one of the girl's you like to flirt with. You have this way of staring at someone like you're trying to learn everything about them in just one look." Erasa explained catching Zee off guard.

"I do?" She thought about it, tucking her tongue in her cheek. "Huh, i never noticed."

Wasn't that interesting? Erasa was one of her best friends, a female she liked to flirt with both on purpose and naturally. She and Videl were in that same category and somehow Videl was lowering on her friendship scale all because she'd caught Gohan's normally oblivious interest. Didn't that just suck?

"Can I ask you something, Erasa?"

"Sure."

"Did Videl ever mention to you that she was crushing on my cousin?"

"What?!" Erasa's eyes went wide in shock. "Videl has a crush on Gohan? Really?"

"I never said that, i'm just wondering if she said anything to you that might have indicated that she did." feeling a nervous prick between the shoulder blades Zee fidgeted and rolled her shoulders to ease the tension.

"No, not a thing. Do you really think she has a thing, for Gohan? I mean he is a cutie but I never figured him her type. I always thought you and her would get together. Since you're both so strong."

"About that…" The school bell rang and she sighed and waved it off. "Never mind, we'll talk about it another time."

~With Gohan and Videl~

She loved the short cut. Videl felt the weight off her shoulders, literally as she ran fingers through the short crop that Gohan had convinced her to get. She eyed Gohan with a mischievous smile after their latest session, one where the flight had taken her higher than the trees. She felt so weightless, so unbelievably free up in the sky like this. She eyed the blue sky, and the fluffy clouds that dispersed as Gohan's younger brothers zipped through them in a game of sky tag. She couldn't wait to get that good!

Lowering herself back down to the ground she stretched out her muscles.

"Hey listen Gohan, make sure you and Zee don't tell my dad about this flight training. I want to surprise him when the tournament comes.

"Sure, I don't really know him, and I think Zee is ignoring the fact that I'm teaching you. She.. I mean he's not entirely thrilled with me at the moment. Been keeping his distance."

"Why's that?"

Beats the heck out of me, Gohan admitted to himself scowling a bit at the grass. Still the mention of Mr. Satan had brought on a thought,

"So, does your dad not know that you're here?"

"Are you kidding? If he found out I was at a boy's house I could just imagine what he'd say." Clearing her throat she mimicked her dad in a strong burly voice that nearly sent him into fits of laughter.

"So I take it he's very protective of you. Does he ever let you train with him?"

"Are you crazy? He's the world champion, he'd tear me apart. No one's allowed to train with him, it's all a big secret now." Videl laughed.

"So, let's say, just hypothetically, that your dad loses. Would you be upset?"

"I wish he would lose! All this fame has gotten to Dad's head. I know my mom has been gone a long time but that's no excuse for him to make an idiot of himself with all these flighty women!" She rose from the ground stretching out again. She wanted to steer away from this particular conversation. "So Gohan, was Zee the one who showed you these martial arts?" Twisting her back and shoulders she kept her eyes on him. She saw his excited expression melt into one of calm happiness.

"Well, no, Both Zee and I were trained separately at first. My dad and a guy named Piccolo taught me how to fly and use my energy, and Zee learned from his mom."

"Your dad participated in the tournaments back in the old days right? How come he's stayed away from it so long?"

"It's kind of a long story… but on the bright side I talked to him just the other day, he and his wife Vega are gonna participate this year, along with Zee's dad Radditz."

"That's awesome… but won't it be a little awkward having old spouses meet up like that? Your mom remarried too right?"

"There's no bad blood, they're all with who they're supposed to be. Doesn't mean that your relationship with them was a mistake or anything, it just means that they found who was really their match." Gohan explained with a grin. "Trust me, you'll see. When we get to the tournament we'll be a large group of happy and excitement."

~Capsule Corps~

Radditz smashed his fist over and over into the metal slab, watching it bend and break and warp from his assault. He imagined it that it was his brother's face, with that stupid careless grin. As the metal formed a ball he snarled and slammed down his fist into the ball til it fit like a glove, then exploded light out til shards burst out in a firework light show.

He eased the tension in his muscles and blew out a breath before letting his smirk slide on. He phased out of super saiyan form and stared at his hands. "Just you wait, Kakarott. I'm going to defeat you. No way am I going to let my little brother beat me again."

"Radditz." Bulma's voice came over the intercom making him grunt in frustration and glanced up as a monitor appeared up ahead.

"What is it, Woman? I'm busy."

"So I've noticed." Bulma sighed and bounced young boxer on her hip. The little black haired bundle stared wide eyed at the screen his hands reaching out trying to play with the camera, but Bulma tugged his hand away, her gaze steady on Radditz. "I've made you a new gi for the tournament I'd like you to come try it on. I want to make sure all the measurements are right. Then you can go back to work."

"Fine." He turned off the monitor and gravity. Wiping the sweat from his forehead he snagged a water bottle from the fridge just outside the gravity room and strolled to the bedroom he shared with Bulma.

She stood in jeans and a tank, the jacket she'd been wearing strewn over the back of a chair as she worked on the material of the gi. Her gaze lifted when she heard Boxer from his playpen give a sound of joy at his father's appearance. "There you are."

"Let's make this fast. There's only a few days left until the tournament and I want to be sure I'm ready to face off against Kakarott." He set down his gear and strolled over to her arms crossed. She stood up, coming about chest level she held up the gi and smiled as it flowed over him, the strong black with green belt really complimenting him.

"I know, but you wanna make sure you're comfortable and prepared too while fighting right? Here…" She set the material down and helped him out of his t shirt. A flush lined her cheeks as she admired his naked chest. She couldn't help herself, she let a hand slide over the sweaty skin felt the muscles tense and ripple under her fingers. It brought back memories… intense, sensual memories.

Seeing her look Radditz couldn't help himself. He took her chin and lifted her head up so his head could bow down and capture her lips in his. The kiss sent Bulma's head into a tailspin and she gripped onto him.

Boxer made sounds from the playpen that broke the intense moment but both parents still had the tingling haze lingering. Radditz slipped on the gi and had to admit the material was very comfortable and allowed a lot easier movement than the t shirt, and even his old saiyan armor.

"It'll do."

"Good." Bulma smiled up at him and backed up a step to cross her arms and admire him. He was no prince charming, Bulma thought, but like his gi, he'll do. "Cream him!"

~Look Out~

"What do you mean you don't want to participate?" Xena stood, her book bag still slung over her staring as the tall namekian sat and meditated. "You've been training everyday just like my dad, you could hold your own."

"I had a small moment where the idea of joining this tournament sounded amusing, but when I heard that every saiyan under the sun is participating I decided my presence there would be strictly on the sidelines."

"That's bullshit and you know it, PIccolo. Since when have you ever been afraid of a challenge?" She frowned and crossed her arms. "What' with you anyway, you've been awfully jumpy these past few days."

"I blame the part of me that's Kami." Piccolo explained slowly opening his eyes to stare at her. "There's something unsettling in the air and it's making me edgy. I've asked Dende to look into it for me but so far he hasn't found anything out of the ordinary."

"The only thing out of the ordinary around here, is you not wanting the chance to go against Goku." She said firmly. "You're as strong as a Saiyan, PIccolo, and you're certainly a whole hell of a lot wiser than them. So if you don't participate I'm calling you chicken."

"It's not being a chicken if I want to spare myself the humiliation of losing to a saiyan for the second time."

"How about losing to a human?"

"What?" Piccolo's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean by that?"

"If you back out you'll be losing out to Krillin. He and his wife 18 are also participating."

That clenched it. Piccolo growled and stood up straight folding his arms and staring down at her. She had been one of his former pupil's, strong on her own from the training Vega had put her through, but he had the opportunity to mold her a bit himself and had secretly enjoyed it.

"You know me too well kid. You and Gohan both. Fine, I'll participate."

"Awesome!" She grinned and held out her hand, she heard him grunt out a small laugh before clasping his around hers. "You won't regret it."

"Believe me I already am."

~Mt. Paos three days before the tournament~

"Gah!" Goku ducked a blast from his wife looking back at the smoking trees, the boys immediately recognizing the routine hefted up water hoses and doused the fire that had been started. "Vega! What's the deal?"

"No more coaching, Kakarott. Today you and I put in a full day's training. The boys are going to go off with Gohan so It's time for serious work!"

"Vega, there's no need to take this so seriously. It's just a tournament, we won't even be able to go Super Saiyan." He ducked another blast and rounded the house to try and get away from the line of fire. No such luck as she followed him.

"I am aware of that, Kakarott, hence why I waited til last minute, but I will not let you get soft on me, we're putting in a full day, and I refuse to cook for you until you show me what you got."

Goku put on the breaks his face immediately going into sour lines.

"You're serious?"

"Deadly… now fight me, Kakarott!"

Goku frowned more and turned serious eyes onto her. He raised his fists up in a pumping motion. "Alright, but you asked for it."

The area stilled a moment… wind kicking up around their bodies as their powers pressed intimately against each other causing static in the air. Their kids sat in front of the house, snacks in their laps getting ready to watch the show.

The wind kicked up more but not from them. Both parties halted their stare contest as from above a capsule plane descended. Goku paled a bit when he felt Chichi's energy signal and let out a small groan.

"Oh man, what'd I do this time?"

"Stupid woman, can't she find someone else to bug for a change?" Vega growled as the woman hobbled out and held her belly her eyes hot and angry despite Yamcha's attempts to soothe her.

"Goku! You've a lot of explaining to do!" Chichi put her hands on her hips her eyes wild with anger. "What's this I hear about Gohan missing school and going off to train with some hussy? Your daughter better not have anything to do with this," she glared at Vega. "She assured me she'd make sure he stayed on track! I even let him stay at Capsule Corps so he could be closer to school!"

"Calm down Chichi," Yamcha soothed and got his hand batted away. "Listen, Goku, we know Gohan's your son too but is there a reason for him to be doing this training? I mean is the Earth in danger?"

"Nothing like that, Gohan is just training for the upcoming tournament, as are the rest of us. A friend of theirs from school asked him to help her." Goku tried to explain and got a hiss.

"He doesn't have time to be playing with some hussy! He needs to be concentrating on his education!"

"A little harsh to be calling her a hussy. They're training for a martial arts championship, not eloping. They're not you who enter a tournament to find her lover."

Goku smacked a hand to his forehead as that sent Chichi off. The two females snarl and gripe at each other nearly coming to blows… til Tarble spoke up.

"I don't know why you're so against Gohan entering. The winner of the Championship gets 100,000 Zeni prize."

"What?" Chichi paused and turned her wide eyes to Tarble. "Really? Oh my goodness, he could get a PhD with that kind of money! Oh my son the PhD… what good sense he had to enter for such a worthy cause!" Chichi held her cheeks flushed with delight.

Goku gave a thumbs up to his son who returned the gesture with a wink. Vega let out an irritable sigh and whirled around heading back inside with a quick slam of the door. Goku winced again and followed her in. He found her in the kitchen rummaging through the fridge.

"I'm sorry about that, Vega. Hey once she and yamcha are gone we'll have that spar, okay?"

"Don't patronize me, Kakarott. I've gotten my need for a fight out. Arguing with your former woman exhausts me." She closed the door and twisted off the cap of water and downed it in a quick chug.

"Well you know, Chichi. The world could be ending and all she would care about is Gohan's studies… but you know what?" He put his hands on her shoulders. "I never considered it an eccentricity, I considered hope and a confidence in the rest of us. She knew some way or another we'd get through it, that life would go on. It's how she's built."

Vega narrowed her eyes on his face.

"Why are you telling me all this?"

"It tells me that secretly deep down Chichi has faith in you, Vega. She may not like you… but she admires your strength, your determination. Just like she admire's Xena's knowledge and wit."

Vega tossed the empty water bottle over her shoulder making it land right in the trash can.

"You know we'll never be friends, Kakarott."

"I know it… but accepting that we're all a part of each other's lives is important. Without Chichi I wouldn't have Gohan and Goten, and without you I wouldn't have Xena, Tarble and Bardock. You're all my family, you're important to me."

"Kakarott…" She closed her eyes when his forehead pressed to hers. Undone she let his lips slide over hers in a sweet kiss. "Mmmm you're such a weak sap." She smirks against his lips. "Let's hope your right cross isn't." She pulled back and crooked a finger. With a grin on his face Goku followed, and the evening was filled with the sounds of their fists.

 _ **Hey readers! Misguided Soul is closing in on the tournament and I'm making the roster from scratch. Who would you like to see paired up in the first bout? Here are the participants!**_

 _ **Goku**_

 _ **Vega**_

 _ **Radditz**_

 _ **Gohan**_

 _ **Zee**_

 _ **Videl**_

 _ **18**_

 _ **Krillin**_

 _ **Piccolo**_

 _ **Satan**_

 _ **Shen (Supreme Kai)**_

 _ **Kibito**_

 _ **Yamu**_

 _ **Spopovich**_

 _ **Mighty mask**_

 _ **Killa**_

 _ **You have some to put in your votes so think and choose carefully. Full roster will be announced in Chapter 7.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: Gather for the Tournament**_


	6. Gather for the Tournament

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 6: Gather for the Tournament**

The day before the tournament, Father and Daughter stood out on the terrace of Capsule Corps. They'd put in a full day of training and were rewarding themselves with an ice cold lemonade and some of Mrs. Brief's cookies.

"Big day, tomorrow." Xena murmured to her father. "Are you ready?"

"I've been ready for years. I'm anxious to test my skills against my brother as well as your mother." He leaned back against the rail watching her face as she stared out at the setting sun. "I imagine you're anxious to try your own skills against Kakarott's spawn."

"Training together and fighting against each other are two different kettles. I'm anxious to see just how different. It's also been awhile since we've done any actual training together. Though he's let himself gone to pot."

"Not altogether true I hear. I heard from a reliable source that he's been going to Piccolo for lessons off and on since the Cell Games. If anything he'll be a worthy mental opponent."

"He's smart but he's never been one to strategically use his head. He's too much like his father to have any common sense. His true power lies in his emotions. We've seen how much emotions can affect our power, but he's still holding tight to his thread of control."

"It worries you that one day that thread will snap and the dam will break. What he'll be capable of when that day comes."

"You know for a man who was absent through most of my life you know me pretty damn well." She grinned at him.

"I may not have been there but I am now, and I make a point to know those that could rival me. You child have impressed me, but don't let it get to your head nor let anyone else know I spoke these words to you. Or I'll make you regret it."

"My lips are sealed, old man." She chugged down the lemonade and watched the last bits of sun disappear. "Tomorrow is gonna be an interesting day."

~Papaya Island~

The Island which had hosted the World Martial Arts Tournament had changed over the years. Through generous donations from Mr. Satan it went from a small town stage and festival, to a city wide event. The tournament grounds were now packed with people and the stage had grown and increased to make up for the increase of popularity the tournament had made.

There were still stands and vendors and other exhibits but the center stage arena and Martial Arts Tournament was the grand puba of it all. On the outskirts of the event area all the Z fighters began to gather and meet up. Bulma and Radditz had picked up Krillin and the other inhabitants of Roshi Island, as well as Chichi and Yamcha. Chichi now held a little baby girl in her arms having given birth only a few days ago. They'd named her Chyna after Chichi's mother.

"She's such a sweetie." Bulma crooned and sighed wishing she also had a little girl to pamper. She eyed Radditz wondering how long it would take her to convince him to have another baby. He was busy eying the surroundings looking for any sign of his brother and Vega.

"Piccolo, you made it!" Xena walked over to the brooding Namek who had been standing to the outside of the crowd trying not to catch too much attention. "Glad to see you weren't scared off."

"Don't push your luck kid." He eyed the group. "Where's Gohan?"

"He'll be here. Him and the other Son's are running a little behind." She eyed the crowd. "They're probably finishing a meal or something."

"Knowing Goku that's exactly what he's doing." Krillin laughed. "That man can never do anything without stuffing his face first."

"Don't I know it." Chichi said with a sniffed and bounced little Chyna.

As if summoned Goku zipped into view grinning ear to ear. Vega stood behind him hand on his shoulder, their children surroundings them. "Hey everyone! Sorry we're late!"

"Tubby over here didn't want to leave til after he'd finished his breakfast." Vega elbowed him earning a laugh. There was an echo of "I knew it" from the crowd before greetings and hugs were exchanged.

"Gohan what in the hell did you do to your costume!?" Zee demanded as she got a good look at him. The full body black suit was the same but in place of the helmet was now a black turban and sunglasses.

"Bulma fixed it for me. Tournament rules said I couldn't wear the headpiece so we thought this would be a good alternative." He grinned and put his hands on his hips. "What do you think?"

"You look ridiculous. GIMME THAT!" She yanked the turban off earning a "HEY" from Gohan and she wrapped the cloth around his face and head and took the sunglasses off setting them on top of her baseball cap. "There that's better."

Now instead of looking like a fool, the full black wear and wrap around cloth gave him a more ninja appearance.

"I still don't see how this is better." He yanked down the front and grimaced. "And it's hot!"

"The sunglasses aren't gonna hide you at all, Gohan. This way your face and hair is covered and you look far better this way anyway. Just trust me alright?"

"I'd listen to her kid. You drew way too much attention dressed the other way."

Gohan grunted. So says the alien wearing shoulder pads… he thought. Then again he used to dress just like him. He glanced at Xena. She was in full Zee disguise. The loose training pants and t shirt gave her that boyish look and she'd yanked a ball cap atop her head and had now put his sunglasses over her face. He had to admit it looked a lot better with her outfit than it did with his.

"So are you still mad at me?" Gohan asked suddenly, and made her turn towards him with a thoughtful frown.

"No, No I'm not Gohan. It's not really my business if you and Videl start having intimate… relations." She grit her teeth a little. "I just didn't want you to get distracted."

"Oh, okay." Still confused Gohan rubbed the back of his head. There was a rush of people that push past them to get to the landing bay. Mr. Satan's plane had just landed and he stood there now gloating in the spotlight with Videl looking less than amused by his antics.

"Oh look who it is guys. It's Mr. Satan, the man who saved us all from Cell because we were too weak." Krillin chuckled.

"He sure likes to ham it up doesn't he?" Yamcha laughed.

"I hear you two know his daughter." Oolong pointed out.

"More or less, we go to school with her." Xena turned her eyes to Gohan who was watching Videl surrounded by the chaos that was her father and the press. He had to feel sorry for her when she had to deal with all that paparazzi.

"Ignore them." Piccolo suggested. "I think it's time we all signed up before the registration booth closes."

"Good idea." Goku agreed and wrapped an arm around Vega as they walked side by side. The boys were bouncing with excitement the closer they got to the stage.

One by one they all signed their names. Xena signed under as "Zee" and Gohan signed under as "The Great Saiyaman," which got some curious looks from the Tournament staff. When Tarble, Bardock, and Goten walked up to register the staff memebrs smiled down.

"Ah yes, three more for the Junior Division."

"What?" Tarble frowned. "What's that supposed to mean."

"The Junior Division is for everyone 15 years old and under." The man explained calmly. Tarble snarled and glanced at his two younger brothers.

"Well that's just great. They're sticking us with all the little kids. No way man, we'll take the adult section!" Tarble tried to negotiate but was immediately shot down.

"Try not to take it too hard son." Vega patted his shoulder. "They're probably just intimidated… after all your father came close to winning twice when he was a kid"

"What do you mean close?" Tarble glanced up at Goku. "Who beat him?"

"Back then I wasn't aware of my Saiyan heritage so I wasn't as strong as I could have been. I was beaten by a wise older fighter named Jackie chun, and another powerful fighter Tien Shinhan. I was kinda hoping he'd show up but I guess he and Chiaotzu are still travelling."

"I could beat ALL of these humans!" Tarble insisted bunching up his fists. "I want to fight with you guys!"

"You will one day son." Goku crouched down and patted his son's head. "Tell you what, after the tournament's over we'll have a match one on one. How about it?"

"Really?" Tarble's eyes lit up. "Just the two of us? You promise?"

"Promise!" Goku ruffled his hair. "Come on, let's go inside." He waved at the others. "Go round up some good seats guys, we'll see yah later!"

"Go get 'em guys! Good Luck!" Bulma waved at everyone giving a thumbs up and a wink to Radditz who smirked and saluted her with two fingers before turning around and strolling inside behind his brother.

Inside the fighter's quarters there was a mix of fighters and Paparazzi. Many people were showing off their strength and gloating for the cameras claiming to be the next "Mr. Satan." The press were eating it up like popcorn at the movies.

Videl avoided the crowds, her eyes searching for Gohan and frowning thoughtfully. She hadn't seen him since they're parted ways after the flight training and she was anxious to see him. She heard a voice behind her and pouted when she spotted Sharpener in a Tux and flowers in his hands. Oh brother.

"I came to bring you some good luck." He offered the roses but she turned her nose up to him.

"No thanks."

"I bought an expensive camera just for today. I'm gonna take pictures of you."

"Oh really?" There was a snort of laughter and Videl's eyes lit up as Zee, who had broken off from the crowd, strolled up. "Zee! Hey! Where's Gohan?"

"He's around here somewhere. He wouldn't miss this." She looked to Sharpener and unable to resist started to burst out laughing. "Oh my god Sharpener you look ridiculous HAHAHAHA! Where the hell did you get the white monkey suit?"

"Hey, stop laughing, it's designer." He tugged at his lapels and scowled at Zee. "What are you doing here?"

"Did you forget? I'm competing this year remember? Videl's idea." Zee wrapped an arm around her shoulder smirking. "She wants to see what I've got."

"How come you didn't ask me?" Sharpener pointed a thumb at his own chest. "I would have participated if you'd just asked."

"No thanks, I've seen what You've got and I know Zee has waaay more." She wrapped an arm around Zee's waist to get closer… her eyes narrowing a bit when she feels the slender curve but quickly ignored it. "We should go. I wanna see Gohan before the Preliminaries start. See you around Sharpener." The two of them strode off and Zee tipped down the glasses winking at him. Once they were out of ear shot the two started laughing and broke apart.

"Did you see his face?" Videl held her ribs. "Oh man his ego's way bruised. Thanks Zee, he was really starting to annoy me."

"No problem." Zee clucked a finger under Videl's chin. "So while I've got you alone… Can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What do you wanna know."

"Gohan… do you… have feelings for him?" At Videl's blush Xena's insides twisted and she fought to keep a calm composure.

"Well, yeah I do. I mean he's smart and funny and now to find out how strong he really is? To find out he can do such amazing things. I see him in a totally new light."

"You like him because he's Saiyaman?"

"I guess in a way… I mean Saiyaman helps people just like i do. He's a hero, not because he has to be but because he wants to be. He wants to help people, he wants to see peace and protect people. You gotta admire a guy like that."

"Yeah you do… but listen Videl." Struggling between her feelings and being loyal to Gohan and to her friendship she shifted and cleared her throat. "There's things about him you don't know yet. Things about our family you don't know yet. So take your time, really get to know him, okay?"

"Yeah, I'm starting to see that. Don't worry, Zee. I won't tell anyone about your guys' secrets no matter what they are."

Jealousy and affection twisted her up, and Zee was suddenly glad she'd snatched Gohan's sunglasses to hide the emotions that were welling up inside her.

"Thanks Videl. Come on, the boys are probably finished getting dressed. Let's go meet up with them."

The two women found them at the front of the arena talking with a reporter who looked a little too eager. Vega and Piccolo strolled right past them ignoring their questions but Goku was polite enough to stop and eye the camera curiously.

"Hello sir, where are you from?"

"Who me? Oh I'm Goku, I live in the Mountains with my family."

"I see, that's fascinating. Is your family with you here today?"

"Yeah, my wife was the woman you just saw, and these are my sons. Gohan stepped out of reach shaking his head but the three boys at his feet jump up grabbing the mic and camera playing with it.

"Hey! That's not a toy! Give it back!"

Videl watched the kids rush around with the camera crew laughing and jerking a thumb in their direction. "Wish I would have thought of that. Hey are those your parents with them?

"Yeah, that's them. You'll get a chance to make introduction later. Right now let's grab Gohan and get inside. Let the others deal with the squirts." Xena whistled waved Gohan over. He jogged up smiling.

"Hey, there you are. You broke off from the group, we thought maybe you got lost or something."

"Get real, Gohan, if I got lost I could just follow your energy. I saw Videl and ran to snag her away from Sharpener. You should have seen him Gohan. He was all dudded up in a suit it was hilarious!"

"Why was he wearing a suit?" Gohan raised a brow from under the mask and eyed Videl who was stifling a laugh of her own.

"He was trying to impress a pretty girl." Xena elbowed Videl who laughed.

"He was being an idiot that's what he was doing. Is that really you under there Gohan?" She got closer trying to peer through the mask and he backed away blushing.

"Y-yeah it's me."

The intimacy had the annoying lurch in Xena's stomach riling up again. Determined to put it aside and embrace their lovey dovey attitude she wrapped an arm around each of them.

"Come on you two crazy kids. Let's go take a gander at the competition." With a companionable arm around each of them, and her teeth gritting inside her mouth she led them to the preliminary center.

 _ **Hey readers! Misguided Soul is closing in on the tournament and I'm making the roster from scratch. Who would you like to see paired up in the first bout? Here are the participants!**_

 _ **Goku**_

 _ **Vega**_

 _ **Radditz**_

 _ **Gohan**_

 _ **Zee**_

 _ **Videl**_

 _ **18**_

 _ **Krillin**_

 _ **Piccolo**_

 _ **Satan**_

 _ **Shen (Supreme Kai)**_

 _ **Kibito**_

 _ **Yamu**_

 _ **Spopovich**_

 _ **Mighty mask**_

 _ **Killa**_

 _ **This is your last chance to put in your votes! Full roster will be announced in the next chapter.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: Let the Games Begin!**_


	7. Let the Game's Begin!

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 7:** **Let the Games Begin!**

The announcer was ecstatic to see Goku, and Krillin coming through the archway that lead through to the preliminary arena. He hadn't seen the two of them since Goku and Piccolo had flown off after a strange alien woman. He was even more ecstatic to see that the strange alien woman was standing beside him and also competing.

"You think you two can stay in the ring this time?" He laughed.

"We'll try." Vega teased and leaned into Goku casually. "You never know what sort of riff raff these events bring after all."

"Maybe in the old days. I'm telling you these games have been nothing but capital B boring since you lot have left us."

Gohan smiled at the interaction glad to see someone was finally appreciating his father. The announcer knew who really defeated Cell and knew that Mr. Satan was nothing but hot air. He glanced down at Videl who luckily was busy elsewhere. Videl may not have the respect for her father that he had originally thought, but the man was still her father so it was best to tread lightly there.

While the rules were laid out for the fighters Goku concentrated at looking around at the other fighters. Most of them were the usual muscle heads who had been trying out for this competition since he'd been a kid. Beside him Vega leaned an arm against his shoulder and let out a short pithy laugh.

"What a bunch of clowns. They haven't got a clue on how out of their element they are."

"We'll just have to be careful not to hurt anyone." Goku pat his wife's hand. The junior division was lead away to get ready for their fights and a punching machine was set front and center to ready the prelims.

"Punching machine? Huh, that's new." Krillin said with a frown.

"And complicated." Xena murmured with a narrowing look. Her family would have to hold back a great deal of power to not simply obliterate the machine. Her point was proven when Android Eighteen was the first of the group to step up and hit over a 700 on a light snapping punch. Mr. Satan had only scored a 137 and it caused mouths to drop. When she was allowed to try again the staff stared wide eyed as one by one the Z fighters took their punches.

"203...197...186…199...210?!" Wide eyed the rosterman eyed the machanism and shook his head. Xena frowned knowing exactly where this was going. "The sensor must be malfunctioning! Fetch the other machine."

"It''s not broken." Zee spoke up catching the attention. "The readings are accurate. Mr, Satan held back too much of his power. I guess he was unaware that some of his colleagues were partaking today."

"Slick." Gohan murmured to her making her smirk.

"Are you saying that Mister Satan could have scored higher?"

"I'm saying that the hero of the universe and a man who could defeat cell would obliterate that machine into pieces… Shall I prove it?" Zee held out her arms and there were calls for her to do just that. Instead of personally showing Zee nodded to her mother.

"Mom, Go to town."

"Finally!" Vega cracked her knuckles chuckling.

"I'd move if I were you." Goku suggested to the members and the staff backed away just as Vega threw out her fist. The machine flew across the grass and smashed into the brick wall in a pile of smoke.

"Now you can go fetch the other machine." Zee lounged against Gohan tipping down the bill of her baseball cap. "Wake me when it's ready."

"Now you've done it." Gohan grumbled. "We're gonna miss the Junior Martial Arts Tournament because of this."

"We will miss a good portion of it, but we'll catch the ending, and that's the most important part. Goten, Tarble, and Bardock won't be fighting each other til close to the end. I got a look at the roster before we headed in. They're on opposite brackets, with Bardock in the middle. He'll fight Goten in the Semi Final match, and whoever wins between those two will go against Tarble in the final match."

"Oh, well if you're sure that we'll get there in time…"

"Trust me, Gohan. I'm a genius remember?"

"Right… Genius." Gohan rolled his eyes but let out a laugh as he did so.

Who in the hell were these people? Videl stared wide eyed looking at Gohan and Zee's family. The whole lot of them were superhuman, and Videl didn't care what Zee said, there was no way her father had held that much power back. Her eyes stayed on Goku and Vega who were cuddled in close, Goku's arm around her shoulder as he grinned like an idiot and she stood tough and cocky after her impressive display.

"I'm giving up." The man behind her was close to wetting his pants. "That woman would turn me inside out." He admitted rushing for the exit with several others behind him.

"I told you we should have just taken out the competition before any of this had started. This is all just a big waste of time." Radditz complained to his brother and had Vega nodding her head in agreement.

"The first couple of opponents would have been easily taken down and the rest would have fled with their tails between their legs." Vega agreed and reached out hand to sooth her former lover's tense shoulders.

"Ah let them have their moments. These guys came for a good fight and to have some fun just like us. Speaking of which we better go to the arena and check out the junior division the boys will be fighting soon."

"Another waste of time. Those kids will be lucky if they last ten seconds. I'd have had Boxer compete but the age limit is five years, but even my tiny brat would have wiped the floor with their competition."

"Bulma would never have allowed it anyway." Goku pointed out as they headed for the exit. He paused when he saw Videl and offered a smile. "Hello there. You're name's Videl right?"

"Huh?" Videl's eyes blinked in surprise when she found herself being talked to. Gohan and Zee wandered over with them Gohan immediately taking a protective step beside her.

"Introduce us already." Goku nudged Gohan with a sly grin.

"Oh, right… Videl this is my dad Goku, and his wife Vega."

"His…" Videl's eyes narrowed a bit in confusion and then she remembered. "Oh that's right, you're Zee's mom and now you're Gohan's step-mom, right?"

"I'm hardly his mother." Vega wrinkled her nose. "We tread lightly around that particular distinction. His real mother doesn't care for it."

"Right," Gohan laughed not at all put off by the distinction. "Anyway this is Videl she's a friend from school."

Krillin let out a sinister chuckle that had eyes turning to him. "Come on Gohan, don't you mean girlfriend?"

"Stop that!" Gohan flushed and let out a chuckle. He didn't notice Zee's eyes harden and look away, but Vega did. She cleared her throat and stretched out "accidentally" knocking Krillin upside the head.

"We better get going, we don't want to miss your little brothers big performance. Should be entertaining." Goku waved. "Nice meeting you."

The video that played before the Junior competition began left most of the audience enthralled. A reenactment of the events that led to Cell's defeat should have been entertaining, but to Tarble he scowled at the corny dialogue, the stupid effects, and the insulting and unrealistic way they'd displayed his parents and sister had gotten his back up and ready to punch something.

"What was that about?" Goten frowned with a raised brow as the big blimp that had displayed the movie sailed away. "None of that was true so why did they show it?"

"Because people are stupid enough to believe that Mr. Satan really did save everyone. No one else but that clown knows who really beat Cell and they're determined to keep it that way. Bunch of phonies… today they'll see. Our parents are gonna punch the stuffing out of that fake!" Tarble's hands clenched and Goten and Bardock looked at each other then nodded smiling.

"Yeah, and we'll show everyone how strong we are as their kids!"

"I expect to see both of you in the end." He turned and eyed his brothers. Raising a fist the three brother's bumped fists grinning with the patented "Son" smile.

Goku watched the Junior competition with a mix of Pride and nostalgia. Seeing his boys fight on the big arena brought him back to his own Tournament days. He'd come in second twice, and then the third… well he'd left right in the middle of the event in hot pursuit of Vega who'd crash landed center stage.

Best day of my life, he thought eying his wife with a grin, was when she had come barrelling into his life. "Great Kids, aren't they?"

"Poor little munchkins don't stand a prayer." Vega agreed. "I see Chichi's got her cheerleader going." She noticed with a smirk. Goten was currently taking on a 14 year old Ikosa and had Chichi shouting and cheering to back him up, while a big red headed woman snarled in response ordering the teenager to beat the "hoo-ha" out of the little runt.

"Yeah but you like to do your cheering on the inside don'tcha honey?" He tapped his temple. "You're quiet and observant on the outside but inside you're twice as loud as she is rooting for our kids."

"You think you know me so well don't you? Just so happens that internal dialogue is also going for Goten."

"Really?"

"Of course." She politely applauded after watching Goten knocked his opponent out with a quick thrust of his fist. "He is a Saiyan after all." She applauded again when Chichi in turn knocked out the raging mother. It was the first time Vega found herself respecting the woman who had once been her romantic rival.

The Junior Championship matches were going by breezily what with Goten, Bardock, and Tarble knocking away their opponents with little effort at all. The semi-finals came up, and Tarble was the first to fight taking on a kid twice his size. He reached out a hand stopping him mid punch and lifted him up off the ground sending him flying out of the ring and onto his butt in the grass. The kid looked stunned and the crowd went wild.

Goten and Bardock beat fists together laughing.

"Alright it's our turn now Bardock."

"Remember Goten, don't go easy on me just cuz I'm smaller than you. I want a good fight. Only the best of us are gonna go against Tarble!" Bardock insisted and had Goten nodding his head in agreement. They rush out and met Tarble at the stairs. The announcer held out a hand stopping Tarble from leaving and he brought the three of them out to center stage.

"Before we get the next match underway I want to introduce you all to the top three competitors. Fun little fact these three are brothers and the youngest competitors to have ever made it this far into Junior Competition."

The crowd wailed with cheers and whistles. Goku stared down proudly at his son's and didn't know how he could possibly wipe the grin off his face.

"Tarble the eldest has advanced to the finals, and now his two younger brothers are about to compete to see which one will take him on for the championship. Will it be Goten? Or Bardock?"

Back in the preliminary arena Videl's ears picked up and she gasped and tugged on Gohan's gi. "It's the semi finals. We're missing your brother's match, Gohan!"

"What? Oh man," He narrowed his eyes at Xena who was scowling at the men still calibrating the machine. "What now, Genius?"

She growled and grit her teeth stepping out of line and running to the front. "If you want something done right you do it yourself. Move slow poke!" She shoved the man out of the way and started calibrating it herself. Within a few seconds she nodded to the guy to hit it and get an accurate reading and dusted off her hands. "There, now then." She stepped in front of the line and gave her wrist a snap the reading going to 227.

"Hey that's not fair! He calibrated it to his own use!" One fighter said and got a cheer of agreements.

"Oh really? Wanna hold out your hand and test that theory?" She cracked her knuckles and the man let out a Tch sound and raised a palm up. With the same quick snap the man let out a cry of pain and fell to the floor as the appendage broke and swelled up. "Oops, I guess I didn't hold enough power back. Sorry." She smirked down at the man and the crowd instantly dispersed and ran for the hills but for Videl, Gohan and three others. "Come on guys, get your readings and let's blow this place."

Videl got hers, eyes widening when she scored a 180 which was higher than her father and the majority of other competitors. "Wow. Zee was right, My dad did hold back." She looked and watched Gohan score and even 200. When the last of them were done Gohan and Videl rushed to the stands to watch the boys fight. Zee lingered watching the staff calculate the lineup and she snatched it up quickly and smirked. "Thanks," She handed it back to him and walked to the arena casually and whistling. Once she heard the sounds of fists flying and beating skin and bone she rose up to the sky and stood at the very top of the arena to watch the show.

Tarble won, Xena knew that would happen. With Bardock and Goten using all their energy to take each other out Tarble was a shoe in coming in fresh from a breezy bout. Bardock pouted having come in third place, and Goten sulked having lost to his older brother.

"We should have had a three on one, it would have been a whole lot more fair!" Goten complained as they stood on the sidelines waiting for Mr. Satan to come out for the expedition match.

"Tell you what…" Tarble eyed his brothers. "We'll have a real match once this is all over. Out in wide open country. Mom and Dad can judge who wins."

"Really?" Goten and Bardock stood up tall. "Will we win a prize if we beat you?" Goten asked.

"Sure… If you win you guys can each pick three of my toys to keep. But if I win you all have to do my chores for a week. Deal?" Tarble smirked.

"It's a deal!" They said in unison and got an okay salute from Tarble.

Videl was still in a daze from watching it all unfold. The fights between Gohan's brothers had been mind boggling. How in the hell could they move that fast? They flew and punched in speeds and power that were stronger than most of the adult fighters.

Zee and Gohan MUST have trained them… or maybe their parents had. She wondered how strong Gohan really was, how her own strength matched up against his? Whatever it took she was bound determined to give him all she had. She was the Champion's daughter, she couldn't be seen as a weakling!

She glanced over and saw the group was starting to leave and she straightened.

"Hey wait, where are you guys going? Aren't you gonna watch the exhibition match between Tarble and my dad? He IS the world champion you know you could study his techniques."

"No thanks." Radditz turned. "I'd much rather stuff my face than watch that clown wave his fists at a child."

"Geez Radditz you don't have to put it like that." Gohan rubbed the back of his head. "Come on, Vega you at least want to watch Tarble don't you?"

"I already know the outcome of this fight. My son is champion and that's all that matters. I for one would like to eat before our own matches start. I won't waste anymore of my time on this foolishness!" She whirled and led the crowd, Goku sent her an apologetic bow of his head before jogging after her. Zee flew from her perch above them and landed beside Videl to put a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't take it to heart. My mom and dad have always been like that." '

"Are they really that confident they can take on my father?" Videl turned her cool blue eyes on Zee and watched the smile twitch at his lips.

"Let's just say they're very proud of their abilities. Mom in particular doesn't like looking or asking for help when it comes to training. Gohan's dad is kinda the same way too but he has a gentler touch and tone than my mom."

"Zee's right." Gohan admitted touching Videl's free shoulder. "Our parents, they like to earn their own strength. Your dad has his way of fighting and our parents have their own."

"I guess that does make sense." Still Videl pondered over it. Her face stayed sober through the aftermath of the exhibition match in which Tarble beat her dad in one punch in which he went through a wall, but immediately laughed off. Once they caught up to the others she stared dumbfounded as Zee, Gohan, and their parents devoured plate after plate of food.

Gohan's family was just so… bizarre. Family, friends, all of them took this competition in confident swaggering stride. It was like they just knew they were gonna qualify, they just knew they were gonna beat out all the rest.

What was their secret? Where did they learn to possess such otherworldly strength and power?

"Whew! Oh boy I'm stuffed. Man you guys i'm so full! If I have to fight one of you first PLEASE don't punch me in the gut." Goku pleaded rubbing his belly.

"You didn't eat anything." Gohan addressed Videl. "You must be on a diet."

"Believe it or not, Gohan." Krillin replied. "Most fighters don't like to stuff themselves before a match."

"We should go check the rosters to see who's fighting who." Eighteen suggested from the back.

"Well if I'm up against Kakarott." Vega eyed her husband with a proud smirk. "The first thing I'm gonna do is punch him in the gut!"

"That makes two of us." Radditz chuckled and caused Goku to groan.

"Aww man, no mercy." Goku paused mid stretch and eyed the two competitors ahead of them. All jokes and teasing faded as all eyes met the strangers and instant wary vibes exchanged amongst the group.

The smaller of the two smiled coolly at the group and floated up to Goku, with a calm voice he spoke.

"Are you by chance, Goku?"

"Yes I am." Goku leaned in a bit trying to figure out if he'd seen this man before. "Do I know you?"

"No, but your reputation as a fighter precedes you. I actually came to this tournament in the off chance I might get to fight you. Not that I think I could win, but merely for the challenge of it." He explained with a smile that Vega thought was a little too… intense. She leaned in protectively to her mate narrowing her eyes on him.

"Goku," voice still calm the stranger stretched out his hand. "May I shake your hand?"

"Huh? Sure of course." Goku took the offered hand… after a brief moment Goku felt the buzzing of power under his palm and the friendliness fell from his face and turned to a cool collected study. The touch broke and the two strangers walked away.

"What was that all about?" Gohan wanted to know and watched Videl rub goosebumps from her arms.

"I don't know, but I don't like it. Come on you guys, let's go." Xena shoved a hand against their backs pushing them forward and the group followed example.

The announcer glanced up from the roster and smiled waving his hand up in greeting as Goku and his friends strolled in. "Oh good you're here. That means everyone's accounted for. Let's get this show on the road huh?"

Radditz glanced around at the other fighters, his fingers tapping along his biceps in impatience as they got the formalities ready. What was the big deal, he wondered. Draw a ball, get an opponent, fight. Easy. No need to be so ceremonial about the whole ordeal.

"Alright, when I call your name please come up." The Announcer looked down at the Roster again. "Mr. Killa!"

Killa, a big black man strolled up tall and confident. His hand reached in tossing balls around then lifted one up to reveal #14.

Kibito, one of the strangers who had approached them earlier, went next and drew #7.

Krillin looked at Gohan and elbowed him in the ribs chuckling. "Let's hope you and your girlfriend aren't paired up in the first match. You might have to marry her just like your dad married Chichi."

"Krillin!" Gohan hissed through his teeth and Xena's back went up and she narrowed her gaze. When Krillin's name was called she stretched out a boot and tripped him, He stumbled and careened into the box of balls causing them to fall and scatter.

"Oops," Xena smirked. "My bad."

Krillin shook off the trip and laughed off his embarrassment while the balls were collected. He reached his hand in and pulled out # 16. "I guess that puts me in the last fight. Bummer."

"Great Saiyaman!" Gohan pumped his arms and walked forward stuffing his glove in he pulled out #5.

Eighteen drew #13 which put her up against Killa, he smacked his lips and winked at her causing her to shudder and grimace.

"Shin's up next!"

"Ready." The stranger who had approached Goku before smiled and approached the box. His hand reached in and pulled out #3. Goku watched him, his stomach lurching a bit as he hoped there really was nothing threatening about these two. Then again… he thought glancing over at Spopovich and Yamu… those two weren't the only ones drawing concerns. The two bald headed fighters seemed to be tensed up about something… they looked ready to explode.

Spopovich in particular gritted his teeth and sweated just to stand and reach in for his ball. It was like something was going on his mind, making his struggle with even the smallest of gestures. He finally managed to pull out the # 10 ball and shove it at the staff member before stalking off to his companion.

Radditz was called next and he picked up the #11 ball and tossed it up for the announcer to catch.

Goku let out a whoop as his name was called and he stretched out a little to shake off the nerves and he shoved his hand in. When he pulled out #8 he eyed the board and then eyed his competitor Kibito. The two of them stared long and hard at each other before he offered a friendly smile and wave. "Good luck."

"That's for damn sure." Xena agreed. "That guy may be creepy looking and stronger than most of the fighters here but he doesn't have a chance against your dad." She murmured to Gohan who nodded.

"I think you're right, I really don't think these guys understand what they're getting into."

"Next up is Videl!"

Speaking of people who didn't know what they were getting into. Xena eyed Videl as she jogged up and grabbed #1 from the box. She seemed excited by that number and considered it a sign of good things to come.

"Zee, you're up!" Videl waved a hand in front of him and Zee caught it giving it a very gentle squeeze.

"Relax Videl, I heard him. Just taking my time." She gave a wink and strolled up. She wondered why her heart was pounding so hard all of a sudden. A strong potent feeling was coming over her and she wasn't entirely sure what it was about. Reaching in the box she let her instinct take over, fingers dancing over the balls and drawing out the one that appealed. When she saw the number her mother's smirk came strong and she turned away from the board and announcer to face Gohan flashing the number at Gohan.

"Zee is number 6! That puts him up against The Great Saiyaman."

"Uh-oh." was the group consensus.

 _ **Long chapter but I wanted to get the majority of the match ups into this chapter. I didn't want to emphasize much on the Junior competition because i wanted a real punch once the real fighting got going. Hope you all enjoyed it.**_

Next Chapter: First Round Worries


	8. First Round Worries

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 8: First Round Worries**

"Now that's a matchup. It's about time those two went head to head after training together for so long." Bulma gave a nod of approval. "Should be exciting."

"Speak for yourself. Gohan is gonna beat her because he has something worth fighting for, he's not in this just for cheap thrills like Xena is." Chichi said scowling behind her binoculars.

"Oh? Is that a fact, need I remind you Chichi, Tarble beat out Goten and Xena was the one who trained him. Like Brother like Sister."

"Goten had to fight Bardock before fighting Tarble, it wasn't a fair matchup!"

"Ladies, ladies, calm down." Yamcha soothed his wife stroking her shoulders and eying Bulma over her head. "There's no need to get so extreme."

"Gohan needs that prize money for college, Yamcha! How else is he gonna get a PhD?"

"Chichi, even if Gohan still wins he'd have to go up against Goku, or Vega, and they'd clearly have the experience over him."

"Don't remind me!" Chichi huffed and bit her bottom lip to stop it from trembling. "I'll never forgive Goku for interfering and inviting every fighter under the sun to participate!"

"Goku and Vega have three kids who could use college money too, yah know. How else do you expect those two to earn any kind of living?" Bulma frowned and crossed her legs.

Chichi went quiet and she sat down accepting the hotdog her husband offered her and quietly began to eat.

 **~Back with the fighters~**

The final slots were drawn and the lineup was

Match 1

Videl Vs. Mighty Mask

Match 2

Majunior Vs. Shin

Match 3

The Great Saiyaman Vs. Zee

Match 4

Kibito Vs. Goku

Match 5

Vega Vs. Spopovich

Match 6

Radditz Vs. Yamu

Match 7

#18 Vs. Killa

Match 8

Krillin Vs. Mr. Satan

"Yes! This is so awesome!" Krillin did his happy dance. "I get to fight Mr. Satan! I can't wait to show that old blowhard who's boss." Krillin snickered and got a thwack against the back of the head from Gohan and Xena. He winced and rubbed the back of his head. "Ow, hey what was that for?"

"Get a clue Krillin," Gohan whispered and motioned his head over to Videl who eyed him suspiciously. Krillin went pale and slapped his hands over his mouth.

"Oops, my bad."

"You're right your bad. If you're gonna beat the champion of the world, the least you could do is make it look good. It would be very problematic if the whole world found out just how weak he was." Xena murmured to him icely.

"Right, got it, make it look good." Krillin suddenly got very nervous and wished he'd been paired up with someone else… ANYONE else.

Xena sighed and crossed her arms staring up at the board. She couldn't help but smirk a little each time she saw her name matched with Gohan's. She was suddenly pumped up. The only way she could be more excited was if she went head to head with her mom, or Kakarott. Then again if everything went well she'd be facing Goku in the next round. Cracking her knuckles she stretched out her arms over her head. She felt the first snap of her bandages and cursed quickly putting her arms down before her bust could be noticed.

"Excuse me," she waved to her friends. "I'll be right back." Hurrying to the bathrooms she detoured into the Men's and closed herself off in the stall. Lifting up her shirt she immediately started to rebandage, but paused her hands when she heard the door ram open and snarling breaths pant out between furious words.

"I wanted to fight Satan! Or at least his bitch of a brat." Spopovich growled between his teeth and bent over the sink, the sweat pouring over his skin.

"You need to be patient, Spopovich. Hercule Satan and his daughter are not our mission. We have to extract the pure energy Lord Babadi sent us to find. One of these fighters will most certainly have the energy we need."

"Tch, I came to this tournament for revenge. Lord Babidi ensured me this new strength would allow me to crush him!"

Xena's eyes narrowed at that. Who was this Lord Babidi? Most of the world believed Hercule Satan to practically be a god in strength… and what was this about pure energy? Closing her eyes she pushed out her senses trying to read their energy signals. What she felt was a deep dark chill that sent chills up her spine. She nearly gasped from the bitter cold of it and put a hand over her mouth to keep herself quiet.

Something was seriously off about those two. Once they'd left she quickly tightened her bandages and hurried back out to her family. She must have appeared freaked out because Goku immediately stepped up and placed a hand on her shoulder. She tensed up and glanced at him.

"You alright, Zee? You look pale."

"I-" she debated whether or not to tell him what she'd overheard. Her eyes glanced over in Yamu and Spopovich direction and she clenched her teeth. "I'm fine. Just over ate I think. I'll be fine."

"Hmm, your match isn't until the third bout, maybe you should sit or take a nap til then." Goku suggested, her mother walking up beside him when she saw the seriousness of the conversation.

"I said I'm fine!" She snapped and clenched her fists at her side. Her raised voice had gained the attention of other people and she knew she had to calm down or she'd just make a mess of everything. She took a deep breath. "Sorry," she immediately apologized and turned her back to them. "I guess maybe I'm nervous. It's one thing to fight in the middle of nowhere, and another to fight with an entire crowd watching you. It's a bit unnerving."

"Well snap out of it," Vega ordered with a grunt. She didn't like Xena's tone and knew the girl was hiding something. "A true warrior can fight anywhere and under any circumstances."

"Right," she nearly growled and stuck her hands into the pockets of her jacket. "Thanks mom."

The competitors moved the the waiting hall where they all did their own form of waiting. Krillin, and a few others stretched and pumped themselves up by moving about anxiously. A few others merely stood patiently just waiting for their turn to go out on the ring. Gohan, Goku and Videl immediately poked their noses around the sign to peer up at the arena they'd be fighting on. Piccolo had found a quiet spot to sit and meditate, his mind whirling on the presence of Shin, and what to expect when fighting against him. His body couldn't relax, his tension all too apparent to his allies and friends.

"What's with Piccolo and Zee?" Videl asked Gohan noting Zee was in a similar mood, leaning back on a wall tensed up and thoughtful. "He was pumped not all that long ago about fighting you and now all of a sudden he looks freaked out."

"Piccolo's always been the serious guy. He takes his fights very seriously, and I guess he considers Shin to be a tough opponent. As for Zee, I don't know, I'll go ask."

"Xena," Gohan kept his voice low as he approached her. "Are you alright? You seem awfully tense. What's gotten into you?"

Zee looked up, he saw a flash of fear and vulnerability in her eyes before she hardened them, a trait she'd learned from her mother.

"Gohan, I don't want you to hold back when we fight each other."

"Hmm? What do you mean?"

"What I mean is don't you dare go easy on me. I don't want you to hold back just because you might have to fight our parents later, I want a real match!" Xena clenched her teeth. "Even if you have to go super saiyan to fight me, if I push I want you to push back ten times harder!"

"Are you sure that's a good idea? We're not training in the mountains anymore, we're in an arena surrounded by people who could get hurt."

"Both of us are old enough to have control of our own power, Gohan. You and I haven't had a proper bout since we were kids, we've played it lightly til now and I want to know once and for all who's gonna come out on top, you or me. You got me?"

Then, Xena thought with affirmity, if she or Gohan were the one Yamu and Spopovitch were after, she'd be powered up and ready to take them down.

"I don't know what's lit the fire under your butt, but sure, I'll take you on." Gohan lifted a fist in a familiar move that caused Xena's twisted guts to loosen in relief. With pure affection she raised her fist up to meet his and bump them together.

"We've always been partners, Gohan… but today we're rivals. Don't forget that."

"Don't worry, I won't."

"It seems Xena's more at ease after talking with Gohan." Vega commented to her husband as he warmed up beside her.

"Yeah, well Gohan's always been good at getting Xena to relax. Their bond is strong. It's carried them through those first harsh years in combat." Goku straightened and stepped up to take her shoulders. "Though I don't think that's what's put that look on your face. Care to share?"

"Mmm, it could be something, could be nothing." It's just, Vega thought with a narrowing glance. The way those two are now… reminds me a lot of how things started with me and Kakarott. "I need more time to think on it."

"Well if you ever want to open up, you know who to talk to." Goku grinned, and Vega glanced over her shoulder with a smirk.

"Yeah… I do."

Out in the audience, Sharpner and Erasa had taken seats and were looking eager for the fight to start. Erasa held her hands together and fidgeted in the seat. "Videl is up first, I'm so excited and nervous."

"Relax Erasa, her only competition today is her father."

"You think so? What about Zee? He's competing too remember?" Erasa pointed out and laughed.

"Please, I've been in boxing club with Zee, he's good but no where near Videl and Mr. Satan's level. Besides he's all goo goo eyes on her so he'll let her win anyway."

"You think so? When I talked to Zee he asked if Videl had a thing for Gohan. Maybe that was his way of asking if he should ask her out." She paused when she saw Zee, Gohan and Videl all talking each other up at the fighter's entrance. "Hey look it's the Great Saiyaman. I wonder if he and Videl would have to fight? Can you imagine the cities two greatest crimefighters facing each other?"

"Nah, anyone with an outfit like that has no chance of getting past the first round."

"Oh I don't know, he's all chic in black like a ninja. It's really dashing if you ask me." Erasa crooned.

"Dashing don't me squat in the ring, Erasa."

The debate cut off as the announcer rushed out into the center ring. He shouted into his mic greeting the crowd and announcing the first bout.

"Let's get Videl and Mighty Mask out into the ring!"

The crowd erupted with cheers. In the bandstand nearly the entire Satan city police force sat with instruments and began to play and chant their hurrahs.

"They really like you." Gohan commented with a grin.

"We've got a smart crowd." Zee agreed.

"Thanks," Videl smiled and stepped forward… paused and glanced back at the two of them. "You two are fighting each other… so give it your all. I don't plan on losing to either of you in the semifinals."

Zee and Gohan exchanged looks, and smiles before turning their attention to her.

"See you then," they spoke together making Videl laugh. She turned and walked out to the ring where Mighty Mask was waiting.

"This should be good and quick." Zee commented and leaned her arm onto his shoulder. "The real interesting match is gonna be her and Piccolo."

"If he makes it to the next round." Gohan glanced behind him. "I think he's psyching himself out."

"That may be true, but Piccolo's always been the serious type, he doesn't know how to chill out and let the ball roll." She whispers to him. "Which is why he'll always lose to your dad."

"You know I can hear you both, right?" Piccolo spoke in their minds making them tense up and glance back again at the meditating Namek.

"Gomen." They said simultaneously.

There was a loud cry of pain as Mighty Mask was flown from the ring, his cape whipping about and his face meeting grass in a humiliating display. The crowds roared with delight and Zee whistled through her fingers in cheer.

"Atta' girl!" Gohan shouted.

"Poor guy never stood a chance…" Krillin watched them take Mighty Mask out on a stretcher, his grin all too wide as he imagined himself doing the same to Mr. Satan.

"You should draw it out…" His wife commented beside him. "The crowd expects a lot from him. If you don't at least make it seem like he's taking everything you've got, then the crowd may come to hate you, and that's not good."

Krillin glanced up at his wife, her eyes were cool, but he could hear the concern in her voice. He smiled and took her hand.

"Don't you worry bout me, babe. I've got this covered."

"Mmm," Eighteen smiled and leaned down kissing his cheek. She laughed a little watching his face go red and giddy. "You haven't changed. I'm glad."

"Next up is Majunior Vs. Shin!"

Without a word Piccolo rose up from his spot on the ground. He stood at the entrance, silent as the grave, his senses going haywire as Shin walked up to stand beside him.

"This should be interesting, don't you think?" He glanced up from the side, his lips curving in a confident smile.

Zee wasn't sure what it was, but a chill ran up her spine as she eyed the short purple faced man. His looks were a bit… mythical. She wondered if he was an alien, and that's why he knew about Goku and the other Saiyans. Or perhaps he recognized all of them from the Cell Game videos, and knew the truth of who really defeated Cell.

Either way Piccolo seemed too tense. Even when the gong sounded for them to start their fight all they did was stare, as if having a battle of the minds. Fear broke out onto Piccolo's face, and she could hear him speak… but couldn't make out the words.

"What's going on?" Videl asked catching Zee's attention beside her. "They're just staring at each other. Aren't they going to fight?"

"I think they already are." Zee's eyes narrowed. "You have to understand Videl, Piccolo is a very capable fighter, but something is making him put the brakes on this bout. I think Shin is manipulating him somehow, making it impossible for Piccolo to throw a punch."

"Are you serious? How?"

"A true competitor," Goku spoke from behind them. "Fights with the mind as well as the body. Piccolo may have the advantage physically… but it looks like Shin is stronger mentally. He's been tugging on Piccolo's mental stability since their fight was announced. I'm just now beginning to see it."

"Can't we help him somehow?" Gohan clenched his fists.

"No… this is Piccolo's fight. It's his decision on what to do."

The announcer, completely unaware of what's happening grunted into the mic and called out to the combatants.

"So is this gonna happen or what?"

"I'm sorry," Piccolo looked over his shoulder at the announcer. "I can't."

Shock registered over all the faces in the group, the announcer shuddered in disbelief as he watched the same fighter who years ago had beaten down his competitors bloodily, turn away from a pint size elf.

"You're withdrawing from the match?"

"Yes. I forfeit."

 _ **Sorry about the long delay in updates. I just got a promotion to Assistant Manager and it's been eating up a lot of my free time. Thanks for your continued support, I hope you all are enjoying the fic.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: Zee Vs. Gohan**_


	9. Zee Vs Gohan

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 9:** _ **Zee Vs. Gohan**_

 _._ The crowd was still in an uproar about the sudden drop out of Majunior. Anxious to see some real fighting, the hardcore fans starting shouting and chanting for the next match.

"Looks like the crowd is getting a bit wild." Goku commented and glanced over at Gohan. "You two should give them a good show and ease things up."

"The Prince of Clowns vs. the Princess of Saiyans… it ought to be an even fight." Vega smirked and Zee tensed and glared back at her.

"Mother, I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't call me that." She flicked her hair out of her face. "It garnishes my reputation."

"Huh!?" Vega snapped. "I'll have you know that it's a-" she trailed off glancing at Videl who blinked in confusion. "Oh… I don't want your friend here to know of how you earned that title."

"What's a Saiyan… and why is your mom calling you a princess?" Videl asked and blinked again when Zee grabbed her chin lifting it up.

"Do us a favor Videl," she whispered and narrowed her eyes. "Forget you ever heard those words, Or I may have to knock you out before the next round."

The announcer outside called for the next round and See pulled back and tucked her hands into her jacket.

"Kiss me good luck?" she teased Videl and had Hogan stammering.

"That's so not funny!" Gohan complained and followed her out towards the stage. See continued to laugh from his reaction. She laughed to cover the ache in her chest.

"It is too. I was expecting that reaction out of her not you." Zee snickered.

"I know you're pretending to be a guy but what if one of your flirts actually kisses you. What are you gonna do then?"

"Enjoy every minute of it. Unlike you Gohan I'm not opposed to kissing a girl." She steps up into the stage and took a glance around the crowd.

"I'm not opposed to it… I just haven't done it. Girls are complicated… I mean I've known you my whole life and I'm not even close to understanding some of the things you do."

"Mmmm…" Zee murmured and lowered her eyes to the ground. Her hands clenched inside the pockets of her jacket. "You've a point there."

Screw it… Xena thought and pulled her hands out to unzip her jacket. Just screw it.

"You know… I'm tired of people not knowing just how strong I really am." she unclipped her ki suppressor and dropped it on the ground.

"... and that includes you." she rammed her foot down smashing it pieces under her boot. "I think it's time to come out and show the world who we saiyans truly are."

Gohan immediately felt the fun in the moment cut straight to business. His body tensed up and he narrowed his eyes.

"I see, so it's gonna be that kind of fight."

"It suits us far better, Gohan." Xena met his eyes, wind picking up and tossing her bangs into her face, but she never broke contact or even blinked. "I very much doubt the almighty Mr. Satan is gonna keep his title by the end of this tournament… so why not show the world exactly why."

The announcer rubbed his stomach, his throat suddenly dry as he saw the combatants stare each other down with such raw intensity. He could feel the crowd simmering down and knew he wasn't alone. With an excited grin on his face he raised the microphone to his lips and called out.

"Round three, Zee Vs. The Great Saiyaman... Fighters ready?"

The moment those words were said, the ground trembled, sparks ignited across the tiles, and pebbles began to float as Xena and Gohan raised their energies. The wind kicked up and pushed at each other, and the lightning increased. Gasps of alarm and excitement shuddered across the crowd as they began to wonder what was causing such amazing realistic effects.

"Is it just me or did the atmosphere suddenly change?" Krillin asked rubbing the shudders out of his arms. "You feel it don't you? That spark?"

"Yes…" Vega smirked. "It's the spark of rivalry and the familiar sense of pride in the air."

"I've got a good feeling," Goku smiled, eyes sparkling with excitement. "It's just like when the boys were fighting earlier. Things are about to get interesting."

"Wow…" Erasa rubbed her hands over her flushed face. Her classmate Gary who sat on the other side of Sharpener nodded feverently.

"I've never seen Zee look so intense." He adjusted his glasses. "Is this how he acts in boxing club?"

"No…" Sharpener whispered, Erasa glanced over to see the shocked expression on his nearly white face. "This… is different. I barely even recognize him." Who is this guy? Sharpener thought staring Zee down. I don't know him at all.

"You may now begin!"

Before the announcer even finished speaking Xena was flying across the tiles. Her hand faked a punch before raising her leg up into a near impossible split to the head. Gohan raised his arm blocking it, his eyes changed a moment realizing just how close she'd come to kicking his head right off his shoulders.

Something got Xena riled up, something had caused this need to fight and exert. Those deep brown, nearly black eyes stare him down like deep empty pools of ink ready to swallow him up. Well if she was gonna be this serious about this, he might as well give it all he got.

Gohan shouted and shoved her leg away pumping his fist out, her leg retracted so her body could move and dodge his two quick punches and she bounced back her bangs floating up. To them it was like slow motion, an instant dragged on forever… but to the outside crowd all they saw were a blur of movements, and the pulse and sounds of rock hard flesh meeting rock hard flesh.

Gohan pushed on the advance giving Xena no time to retreat from her close distance. He took advantage of his height on her and barrelled a rapid fire series of punches that left her to squirm and dodge in place. One nicked her cheek, causing her teeth to set and she jumped, bolting her legs up to catch him in the chin and flip backwards in an elegant arch.

"Oh yeah! Now that's what I'm talking about!" Krillin exclaimed from the sidelines, his fists punched up in excitement.

"Master," Kibito whispered down to Shin who was intensely watching the battle.

"I know, Kibito. These two have far more power than I'd suspected." Shin glanced over to Piccolo, and in his mind spoke with him telepathically.

 _Piccolo… may I have a moment?_

Piccolo's body tensed up from behind Goku and glanced over his shoulder to make eye contact with Shin before nodding.

 _The two Saiyans now in the ring… do they possess the same powers as their parents?_

Piccolo hesitated for a moment, he glanced back out at the ring where Gohan sent Xena chasing after him up into the sky, gasps from the crowd echoing. He nodded again.

 _I see… then we must be cautious. The reason for my being here is about to come to light and sooner that I'd anticipated. I'll need your support if I'm to protect your friends._

Piccolo felt a bead of sweat drip down his forehead. His breath shook a bit and he clenched his teeth nodding one last time.

"I understand."

"Hmmm" Goku, arms folded and brow furrowed, glanced back at Piccolo. "Did you say something?"

"No, it's nothing, just sorting things out in my head." Piccolo forced himself to relax and watch the fight. "Gohan seems to have gotten stronger… I was afraid he'd slack off after all those years of studying and schooling."

"Mmmm, he told me he wasn't as far along as he'd like to be with his training." Goku explained. "He's never been as dedicated or as naturally gifted to fight as Xena has… but that very reason is what pushed to him to keep himself in shape. She's his motivation to keep getting stronger, and he's hers."

"They bring out the best in each other," Vega agreed. "They're the only fighters within their own age group that can outdo each other. Neither wants to lose to the other."

There was the cracking sound of bone meeting bone and Krillin let out a shudder as he watched Xena taking a spinning dive from the sky and down towards the ground. She was precariously close to hitting the grass, and spun around quickly flipping herself and landing hard on the ring, the tile cracking under the weight.

Growling her eyes darted up. Gohan was breathing heavily his mask starting to rip apart from her punches to his face. Her own shirt was ripped at the shoulders so the sleeve fell to one side. It showed the smallest hint of the bandages that bound her breasts.

"Hmm?" Videl's eyes narrowed. "What's that under Zee's shirt…" she gasped. "Are those bandages? Is Zee fighting while injured?"

"Leave them be, girl." Vega warned her. "Zee wouldn't want you to stop the fight. There's too much pride at stake."

"Pride?!" Videl whirled around. "We don't know how bad he's injured! What if it's something really serious?"

"That's his decision." Vega grunted. "Leave them alone."

Zee growled and cracked her fingers before curling them out into a familiar gesture that had Gohan's eyes widening.

"Don't!"

"Gallick Gun!" Zee shot out the blast up into the air, the violet light piercing the blue sky and Gohan cupped his hands and fired his Kamehameha to match the force. The brutal beam of lights pushed against each other. The light was blinding causing people to scream and cover their eyes, but peek between trying to see the battling figures.

Gohan tried to think quickly… he'd pushed the Kamehameha attack out of instinct… but if he kept pushing the energy was gonna rip apart the stage and possibly hurt someone… but if he let go he'd have to take the blast full force and maybe even forfeit the match.

He tried to think, tried to come up with a plan, sweat bead down his temples from the exertion of energy. He looked around and down at the stage… and struck with inspiration he shouted out pushing the energy with a quick punch to waver the beam long enough for him to phase out of sight, and reappear on stage. He tackled Xena to the ground, the beams dispersing up and safely in he air as he then pinned her down to the ground.

"YEAH! That a boy, Gohan!" Goku shouted.

"Zee get up!" Vega shouted in response. "Don't let him take advantage of the situation! Push him off!"

Zee tried, but Gohan outweighed her, and was using her smaller stature to his advantage by covering it completely and forcing her head down. She could feel his breath on her neck, his hands in her hair, his scent blocking her senses to the point she could even taste him. Her face went flustered and lust churned in her gut. Her eyes went soft and submissive for a moment… just a moment.

That moment was too long, and aggrivated her. Her fingers clenched and she shook under him. Her eyes lit with fire again as she pushed up with her energy, her hair spiking up, and she screamed. The sudden blast of energy knocked Gohan up and off and he skidded across the ring. He winced and looked up then panicked.

"Zee! What are you doing, we're not supposed to-"

"Our little brothers already broke that rule," Zee snarled standing in super saiyan form, tall and proud, hair spiky yellow, eyes teal and menacing. "It's free game now, and frankly who cares if they figure it out. In fact…" She strolled up to him. Her hand reached out and snagged the mask off his face ripping it off to reveal his face to the crowd.

"UNBELIEVABLE!" The announcer shouts into his mic. "Zee has just unmasked The Great Saiyaman!"

"Is that… Gohan?!" Gary peered through his binoculars to get a closer look. "It is!"

"Gohan is the Great Saiyaman?" Sharpener hissed between his teeth. "That goofy geek?"

"He is, and Zee… Zee's the gold fighter! Oh wow, so much revelation."

"I don't know how much more I can take." Sharpener groaned. "My best friend is this all powerful golden god and his dorky cousin is the local super hero."

"Hey does anybody else think that Zee looks kinda weird?" Gary zoomed in more. "He's always been covered up with jackets and stuff, but with his clothes all ripped up, he kinda looks like a girl."

"What are you talking about?" Sharpener accused. "That's no way to talk about him. If he heard you say that he'd kick your ass."

"But he's got breas-" He couldn't finish. Sharpener yanked the binoculars from Gary making him choke on the strap. He peered through and got a good look. The face, the stance, the shape of the body… good god. Pale faced and unable to take anymore Sharpener slumped in his seat and stared blankly in the sky.

"Zee… is a girl?" Videl stared wide eyed. "No wonder he couldn't change in the Men's locker room. How come I didn't realize it sooner?"

"When my Xena wants to keep a secret you normally have to pry her with a crowbar to get it out." Vega explained patting Videl's shoulder. "I think she's come to the realization she really doesn't care if others know she's a woman."

"I can't believe you just did that!" Gohan accused getting to his feet with a wince. "Now the whole school is gonna know everything."

"Be honest, Gohan. Did you really care whether or not they find out? The only reason you made this facade was to protect people from knowing about our family, wasn't it?" She held up the mask and tossed it away. "Needless to say today everything is coming out in the open. Who we are, what we're capable of. There's no turning back now and I don't know about you but I've decided to embrace it." Her eyes lit with pride and confidence. "My name is Xena Vegeta Son, and I am the young girl who fought against Cell!"

Gohan paled as the crowd went insane. She'd just opened up a can of worms, and there was no putting it back where it belonged.

"Xena…"

"And you!" She continued pointing a finger at him. "You are Gohan Son, and your father de-" she gasped and her eyes widened and went gray as a quick sharp stab pierced her gut. She turned her head just enough to see Spopovich crazed grinning face. In his hands he held a strange alien like object and it's sharp piercing tip was buried in her side.

"Your energy now belongs to Master Babidi." Yamu whispered in his ear.

Xena tried to move, but something was keeping her bound, and she couldn't break free. All around her things went into chaos as people panicked, her family shouting, but their voices were warped. Her eyes met Gohan's as he too stood stiff, his face obviously struggling showing something was keeping him from moving.

"Go...han…" Her eyes rolled up and her world went black.

 _ **Yay! Another chapter done! I'm so happy with myself right now I could squee. Hope you won't hate me for the cliffy.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: Revealing Truths**_


	10. Revealing Truths

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 10: Revealing Truths**

"Do you mind explaining yourself you purple freak!" Goku held Vega by the shoulders preventing her from punching the lights out of Shin who was keeping Gohan and Zee confined with a mental binding.

"I'm sorry but there's not much time. Once Spopovitch and Yamu have collected Zee's energy I must follow them."

"You're leaving!? What about my daughter? You're just gonna leave her there to die?" Vega snarled and eyed Piccolo with the same anger and disdain since it was him who had prevented her from jumping in and helping her daughter in the first place.

"Your daughter will be fine." Kibito insisted. "I shall heal her myself, and then join my master in pursuit of Zee's energy."

"If you will accompany me," Shin explained as the collection process becomes finished. "I shall give you the answers you seek on the way to their destination."

"Well I sure could use some answers!" Videl clenched her fists and scowled. "What the hell is going on?! I'm losing my mind here!" She looked back and forth between the ring and Shin. "Zee's just been stabbed by those two freaks and all of you are just standing there doing nothing!"

"Your friend is not in danger, they don't want her life, just her energy. I hadn't expected Xena and Gohan to show such strength, my intentions were focused on Goku being the one they were looking for."

"What do you mean?" Vega demanded letting out a shaky breath as Xena's body plopped lifelessly onto the ground and her assailants take off into the air. Gohan immediately was able to move and went to her side trying to shake her awake.

"As I said, follow me and find out for yourself." Shin took off in pursuit of Yamu and Spopovitch. Vega snarled at the retreat and whirled around. Her temper was flaring and everyone could see it. She was struggling between her mother instincts, her pride, and her Saiyan curiosity. She had to know what was going on, she had to find out just what sort of beasts were lurking around and once again threatening her family.

"Kakarott," Vega turned to her husband with a firm scowl. "Does that white cat and fat boy still make those senzu beans?"

"Yeah, they do." Goku rubbed the back of his head. "As far as I know."

"Then use your instant transmission and get us some. I'll go with the Supreme Kai and you can use my ki to find us afterward. Radditz…" She turned but he was already stepping up behind her.

"I'm going as well. I'd like to know what the hell is going on, not to mention I want to kill the pathetic humans who dare hurt my daughter." Radditz lifted his large fist.

Vega narrowed her eyes, she had intended to thrust the parenting responsibilities to him nad have him look after Xena. However she saw the anger, and the need to pummell something, and sympathized immediately. She nodded.

"Alright then, it's settled. You, pink face! You'd better take care of my daughter or the next person who will be lying on the ground is you!"

"You have my word, Once I have healed her I will join you, I'm sure Gohan and Xena will want to do the same."

"What about the rest of us?" Krillin put in with a hard swallow. "Maybe I should-"

"You, baldy, will just get in the way." Vega snarled and Goku laughed and pat Krillin on the shoulder.

"I suggest you stay here and keep the crowd entertained. Someone needs to take on Mr. Satan after all."

"Eheheheh, I guess you're right... but You'll let us know if we're needed alright?"

"You got it... we'll meet up with you guys later." Goku placed a hand on his wife's shoulder, and she lifted her own to lace their fingers and grip tight.

"Don't take too long, Kakarott."

"I'll catch up to you in a flash, no worries."

Vega nodded before taking off after the Supreme Kai with Radditz right behind her. It didn't take Piccolo long to follow suit and join the small group, and Goku immediately phased away to snag some senzu beans from Korin.

Videl flew across the field and onto the platform. Her feet skidded when she landed and she immediately knelt beside Gohan who was holding Xena to his chest.

"I couldn't move… something was stopping me from helping her." Gohan grit his teeth. "What the hell is going on?"

"I don't know Gohan, but your parents just left to find out what's happening." Videl placed a hand on Xena's cheek. "She's cold, but alive… Hey! Bring out a stretcher!"

"Zee!" Sharpener, rushing down from the stands ran across the field and leapt up over the platform. "Videl what the hell is going on?"

"I don't know, everything is so crazy right now." Videl looked up as Kibito joined them and motioned for them to step aside.

"Please move, you're in my way." Kibito knelt and rolled Xena over onto her back. With a press of his palm he poured healing energy into her.

"What are you doing?!" Sharpener demanded. "She needs a doctor! You're in the way!"

"Sharpener calm down," Gohan held up a hand to calm him and choked a bit when Sharpener whirled on him.

"WHY THE HELL WERE YOU JUST STANDING THERE!?" He demanded snagging him up by the front of his uniform. "You're supposed to be the Great Saiyaman, a hero, and you just stood there and let her get stabbed!"

"Sharpener let him go!" Videl yanked on him. "It wasn't his fault, that weird purple guy was controlling him! I saw the whole thing!"

Xena blinked in and out of consciousness, her eyes fluttering open and the first thing she saw was Gohan getting interrogated by Sharpener and Videl trying to intervene. She blinked several times groaning and shaking off the buzz and stood up flexing her hands out.

"Whoa, what a rush… what happened?"

"Zee! Are you okay?" Sharpener grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her to face him. "You were stabbed, but you're not bleeding… in fact all your wounds are gone… what the hell happened? What's going on? Why the hell didn't you tell me you were a girl!?"

"What?" Xena blinked and held her head. "Kami, one question at a time, Sharpener." She shook off the haze and looked at her hands. Her power was restored and to a point where she felt even more powerful than before. Her memory was fuzzy, but she suddenly remembered what had happened and her teeth grit and she pushed Sharpener back making him fall into Gohan and Videl.

"Blast it! Where are they? Those two freaks are gonna get the pounding of their life! How humiliating!" Xena snarled.

"Easy now, Xena. "Kibito soothed her holding a palm up for peace. "Spopovitch and Yamu have flown off, and my master as well as your parents are following them as we speak."

"Then there's no time to lose… I have to follow them! Gohan, sorry but I'm forfeiting." Xena rubbed her stomach where the spike had pierced, there was no wound, no scar, but she could still feel it burning where they'd drained her. It was infuriating!

"Wait, Xena are you really gonna go after them?"

"I don't know what those freaks want with my energy, but right from the start I knew they were up to no good, and I want to find out just what their intentions are." Her eyes met Kibito, the Kai nodded and rose up slowly flying off at a quiet pace so to give them plenty of chance to catch up.

"If that's the case, then I'm going with you. No way I can just sit back after what just happened." Gohan pumped his fists and turned to Videl and Sharpener. "Sorry Videl, looks like I won't be seeing you in the semifinals."

"Let me go, too Gohan." Videl asked with big blue eyes pleading. "I want to know what's going on."

"No," Xena said sharply before Gohan could say a word.

"I'll just follow you anyway," Videl said with a pout. "You can't stop me."

"No offense Videl, but you're just gonna get in the way. Don't you remember what I said about not knowing things about our family. If you come with us you may not like what you hear, and on top of that you'll be way out of your comfort zone."

"Zee," Sharpener stepped up. "I don't know what you're talking about, but we're friends aren't we? We should have a right to choose whether or not it's out of our comfort zone."

"Just trust me," Xena turned her head away her eyes sad and serious. "You shouldn't get involved."

"Tell yah what," Gohan interjected. "Once we get back Zee and I will explain everything, but you two should really stay here. This is looking like it's gonna be something really dangerous, and we don't want you guys to get hurt."

"Besides," Zee said floating up, Sharpener's eyes widening at the sight of her taking flight. "You'd really have a hard time keeping up." She offered a smile and a wink making Sharpener blush. Xena nodded her head for Gohan to follow, and the two of them took flight off after Kibito.

Videl growled between her teeth and made a dash to take flight, but Sharpener grabbed her arm.

"Oh no you don't, Videl. I'm not being left behind. If we're gonna follow them we're doing it with a capsule plane. Come on!" He yanked her out rushing past Mr. Satan who screamed at them to stop and come back.

Just as they get ready to head out Sharpener nearly tripped over Tarble who was coming around the next corner.

"Geez! Watch it kid!"

"You watch it! You nearly made me tip my ice cream… huh? Videl? What's wrong?" He looked past Sharpener at Videl who was flushed from the run and excitement.

"We're trying to catch up to Xena and Gohan, they just left, flying after some guy."

"What?" dropping his ice cream he grabbed her free hand. "What about the tournament… what happened?"

A few minutes later Tarble, Goten and Bardock were in Videl's capsule jet speeding off in the direction of Gohan and Xena's energy.

"Man! I knew I shouldn't have let you two talk me into getting ice cream! We missed all the action!" Tarble shouted at his brothers.

"It was your idea to get something to eat after the tournament!" Bardock disagreed with a frown. "Goten and I didn't know the line for ice cream would be so long."

"Who cares whose fault it was." Goten argued. "Dad, and Vega and even uncle Radditz left to fight the guys who hurt Xena. We have to get there fast to help them out. Hey Videl can't this plane go any faster?" Goten rushed up to the control panel where Sharpener and Videl were. "We'll never catch up at this rate."

"I can boost the power a bit more, but it still may not be enough."

"I'm still confused about what's going on." Erasa spoke from the back passenger seats. Her and Gary had caught up with Videl and Sharpener just as they'd started to load into the plane. Also worried about their friends they'd hopped aboard without much thought. "Gohan is the Great Saiyaman, Zee is the Gold Fighter, and on top of that Zee is a girl? Even more than that, both of them can fly and have super human strength and abilities. Just where are you guys from?"

"Should we tell them the truth?" Bardock whispered to Tarble.

"Even if we did, they may not believe us." Tarble whispered back.

"Believe what?" Gary asked adjusting his glasses. "We can't believe anything if you won't tell us, and at this rate any story would be convincing after what we just saw. Then again it could all just be a trick like Mr. Satan says."

"Xena says Mr. Satan's a lia-" Goten muffled as Tarble covered his mouth laughing.

"He's not fully informed…" Tarble corrected. "Let's just say fighting runs in the blood, we're from generations of really strong fighters and all of the family's techniques came down through family."

"So everyone in your group learned techniques from members of your family." This from Sharpener who'd taken interest. "How come Zee and Gohan hide their strength?"

"Probably because of guys like Yamu and Spopovitch…" Videl put in frowning. "Don't you think it was strange those two attacked Xena after seeing her power. They probably hide it so others can't take advantage of it."

Yeah, we'll go with that, Tarble thought and leaned back in his seat.

"Tarble…" Videl, noticing the look on his face from the rear view mirror, called back over her shoulder. "You said you can sense Gohan and Xena's life force, so you'll be able to tell which direction to go right?"

"Yes," Tarble crossed his arms. "We're heading the right way, but they're pulling away faster and faster. They must really be in a hurry to catch these guys."

"Why don't we give them a boost?" Goten offered and bounced on his toes in the center aisle. "These guys can't fly on their own, but maybe if we…"

"Good idea, Goten!" Catching on, Bardock punched his fists up and then went to the window, pulling it open he jumped out. Erasa freaked out and made a grab for him but missed and watched with horror as Bardock's lil body disappeared under the plane.

"He- He jumped! Oh man, their parents are gonna kill us. Gohan and Zee are gonna kill us!"

Videl just laughed.

"Don't worry you guys, you'll learn fast that these kids are anything but ordinary." Suddenly the plane jerked and both Videl and Sharpener gripped onto their seats as Bardock zipped the plane forward at rocket speeds.

"WHAAA! I'm beginning to understand what you mean!" Sharpener shouted and wondered just what the hell he'd gotten himself into.

 **~With the Supreme Kai~**

"So let me see if I've got this straight." Back from his trip to Korin's tower, Goku flew beside his wife and Supreme Kai. He was trying to wrap his head around the situation the Kai had laid out for him. "This Wizard Babidi is the son of your old nemesis Bibidi. He wants to resurrect a monster named Majin Buu to destroy the planets, but in order to do that he needs an collection of pure energy?"

"That's correct," Supreme Kai explained with a calm yet grim voice. "Which is why they attacked Xena after her transformation. The girl's super saiyan power was like a beacon which attracted Yamu and Spopovitch."

"If that's the case why didn't they attack my younger sons during the junior championship. Both Goten and Tarble went Super Saiyan during their fights."

"Simple, because their transformations were brief. They probably sparked the meter gaining attention, but disappeared once the transformation fizzled away. Yamu and Spopovitch knew that there was A fighter with the energy they needed, but didn't know at the time where to find it, until Xena showed hers during her fight with Gohan.

"Makes sense…" Goku nodded his head and looked to Vega. While he and Piccolo had asked questions and put in opinions, her and Radditz had stayed relatively silent during the flight. "Don't worry, you two, I'm sure she's fine."

"I know she is," Radditz said with a grunt. "She's not the type to just lay down and die."

"No she's not," Vega agreed. "I can't say I'm too happy with the fact that you guys used us to lure out your prey." Vega narrowed her eyes at Supreme Kai. "According to your story you should have ended it years ago after you killed Bibidi. If anyone dies today it's gonna be on your head."

"Vega!" Goku hissed a warning. "Geez, I know you're angry but come on, mind your manners."

"No, she's absolutely right, Goku." The Kai admitted bowing his head and let out a small sigh. "It is my responsibility, and I thank you and your family for helping me in this dire hour. I only hope it's not too late."

 _ **Yay! It's been awhile, but I finally punched it out! I hope you guys are enjoying the fic despite the long delays in posting. I've got a lot planned for this particular fic so you've a lot to look forward to.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: Into the Fray**_


	11. Into The Fray

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 11: Into the Fray**

Gohan eyed Xena as they flew. She'd been suspiciously quiet for the last half hour they'd flown. Kibito had given them the information on Babidi and Majin Buu, but there was this uncomfortable silence that followed.

"Hey you okay?"

"I should have told Goku and my mom about them." Xena admitted with a snarl. " I knew they were up to something bad because I overheard them talking. I didn't want to cause any panic, so I kept it to myself."

"So that's why you were so quiet and freaked out right before the battle." Gohan deduced.

"Yes, and it's also the reason I asked you not to hold back. If they were even thinking about pulling anything I wanted them to see just how strong and powerful we really were, and they'd think twice about attacking us. Turns out that was the wrong course of action."

"No," Kibito spoke suddenly. "You chose exactly the right course of action. Had you not, I would have coerced Goku into revealing his super saiyan strength so that he would be targeted. We needed them to attain the energy, so we could follow them to Babidi's location."

"That may be," Xena growled between her teeth. "I still don't like the fact I looked like an idiot being overpowered like that. I know my mother, she's gonna lecture me about keeping my guard up about such things and to stop boasting."

"Talk about pot calling the kettle black." Gohan murmured under his breath with a secret smile.

Xena stayed quiet after that. She thought of all that Kibito had told them. From what she understood, this Babidi character wasn't physically strong, but his magic made him dangerous. If they could physically get their hands on him it wouldn't be much trouble defeating him, but who knew what sort of tricks and spells he could conjur.

He was a mind manipulator, that much was obvious from the way he was controlling Yamu and Spopovitch… she wondered.

"Kibito, can anyone come under Babidi's spell?"

"Not necessarily… Babidi can see the darkness in people's hearts and he feeds on that and uses it to control their minds. So long as your heart and mind are pure, there shouldn't be any dangers."

"That worries me…" Xena said catching Kibito's and Gohan's attention.

"Why?" Gohan asked. "All of us are good hearted, we're not evil."

"Now… but from what I've heard mom and Piccolo haven't always been. Piccolo has a mean past, and my mom and dad were under Frieza's thumb for years before breaking free of it. Who knows what kind of shadows are lingering inside them."

"If that's the case we must be extremely cautious." Kibito swallowed. "If Babidi gets wind of this he will not hesitate to use it to his advantage. I suggest your mother and the others keep a low profile whilst we're there."

"Agreed, if Babidi and Majin Buu are as terrible as you say, we can't afford to make any mistakes."

"Hey look!" Gohan said suddenly. "There they are!"

Their eyes all went forward to see the group ahead of them. Xena punched out an extra burst of speed to catch up to her mother and father.

"Hey, you made it!" Goku called out with a grin. "Glad to see you're all right, Xena."

"I'm fine, I take it Supreme Kai told you about what's going on?" Xena inquired.

"Yes," Vega answered with a solemn frown. "We're all up to speed."

"Looks like we've got our work cut out for us again, eh Gohan?" Goku looked to his son with a laugh. "But hey let's try to have some fun with this one. It's been way too long."

Up ahead, Yamu and Spopovitch finally landed in a desolate field. There were a few scattered planes meant for farming, and the only sign of people was a little house just past a mountainous rock formation.

"This is odd, we've searched this area before." Kibito pointed out as the group hid atop the rock formation and peeked down at the figures below. Yamu and Spopovich were greeting another figure, another henchmen it seemed.

"Hey, doesn't the ground look weird? Like it's been dug up recently."

"Of course, it's so obvious, that's why we didn't see his ship while flying over, he buried the entire thing underground."

"Then that means he must know Kibito and I followed him here, otherwise there would be no need for him to hide his ship."

"I say we all attack now." Piccolo suggested. "The longer we wait the more time they have to resurrect Majin Buu."

"No, not just yet." Supreme Kai said in a patient voice. "We must bide our time. They will release Majin Buu outside the ship, they wouldn't want it completely destroyed. We will wait for the right opportunity to present itself."

Xena looked at Gohan when she sensed him tense and growl under his breath. She followed his eyes down to the farmhouse, and saw the slaughtered family below. Sympathy and a little rage of her own had her reaching out and taking his hand for moral support.

He looked at her, understood the meaning of her grip and nodded his head immediately calming. There was no point in getting upset. If they were discovered, they'd lose the advantage of surprise. They had to be patient.

Babidi finally showed himself, floating in front of his newest minion, Dabura. According to Supreme Kai Dabura was known as King of the Demons, and the most powerful fighter in his dark shadow world. While Dabura looked his part, devilish, and yet somehow regal, Babidi on the other hand was a hideous bug looking creature, small and sinister with shriveled yellow skin, and bugged out eyes that stared meticulously at Spopovich and Yamu.

He was presented with the container that held Xena's energy and he accepted it with a sadistic glee on his face.

"Good Work, boys. We are now one step closer to reaching our goal."

"When you're as strong as us this kind of job is like taking baby form a candy." Spopovich laughed idiotically, wondering just what sort of reward was in store for him. Perhaps Babidi could give him even more strength, perhaps Babidi would give him enough money and glory to shove Mr. Satan down in the dirt.

"It's such a shame that I have no more further use for you." Babidi slowly turned back around to them, his eyes glowing.

Everyone on the cliffs watched in horror as Spopovich's body began to grow and misshapen, Babidi used his influence on the poor human's mind and body making him explode from the inside out. When Yamu ran and tried to escape the same fate, he was quickly blasted out of the air, by Babidi's other minion Pui Pui.

"What the-" Xena trembled behind Gohan floating in the air a bit more for a better look. Had she seen wrong, did this sadistic freak really just blow up his own henchmen?

"What kind of people blow up their own partners?" Gohan demanded his face pale with shock.

"The Evil kind, Gohan." Vega calmly explained, unphased by the cruel act. "Every villain we've ever come across has done this in some form or another, Frieza, the Androids, Cell, it's just the way they're built."

She would know, Xena thought to herself staring at her mother. She'd seen it first hand, and she was sure her father had as well. However even Radditz looked a little green at the horrific display.

Babidi stepped forward, he kept his voice low so only his own minions could hear him. "It would seem we have some company. Spopovich and Yamu were a bit careless in their escape." He turned his eyes off to the side, and pinpointed the source of energy he was sensing."There on that rock formation, you'll find Supreme Kai and several of his friends."

"The fools think they're well hidden." Dabura laughed darkly and used his own abilities to get a clear reading of the figures on the cliff. "Eight in all, we cannot use the energy of the Supreme Kai or his follower, but at least five of these fighters possess great energy we could use."

"Oh more than that Dabura, in the top three alone we'll find plenty to suit our needs, how marvelous." Babidi floated back and turned towards the ship. "Let's lure them inside so we can absorb their energy, that would be the simplest course I think."

Oblivious to the conversation at hand the others watched with a mix of thoughts buzzing around. Xena watched with narrowed eyes, her lips pursed into a deep frown. Babidi had retreated into the ship with Pui Pui following close behind him leaving Dabura outside alone. The Demon King hadn't moved since he'd turned toward the ship… as if he waited for something.

"Hey, why is Dabura just standing there by himself." Goku asked.

Why indeed… and it hit Xena like a freight chain. She jumped in the air beside her mother grabbing her arm.

"Mom!" Xena started and Vega caught on, with a startled gasp.

"He knows we're here!" Vega announced and Goku barely had time to get to his feet before Dabura was flying toward them in a fast blur. He appeared right in front of Kibito, his menacing gold eyes staring straight at his first victim. With a laugh he released a massive energy blast that obliterated Kibito within seconds.

"No, Kibito!" Gohan shouted

"You!" Goku snarled, enraged by the callous act. He leapt at him, feinted some punches which Dabura easily brushed off. Vega, catching onto her husband's tactic followed suit leapt next and punched her fists in a quick rapid motion.

That brief interaction gave the Princess of Saiyans a gauge of the power this demon held… he was no pushover… but the initial fear of this demon's power waned and she his a smirk. So… the Kai's friend had just been careless.

Dabura, confident and amused by the playful act decided to give them a real show. He needed to save a good portion of the powerful fighters… and chose carefully. He eyed each target one by one. The girl perhaps… and the green faced one.

He wanted to see their faces twisted in horror and confusion… and forever frozen in stone. Choosing the weaker of the two he aimed for Piccolo, catching him right in the chest as the Namek moved to dodge it.

"Ugh!" Disgusted Xena turned her eyes up, she caught sight of Dabura's gaze and clenched her teeth, putting up her fists ready for an attack. With a laugh he licked his lips and spat at her.

"Hey!" Radditz shoved Xena aside smacking the spit away with a disgusted look. "How dare you spit at my daughter? You repulsive pig!"

The moment the spit hit his hand Radditz immediately felt the weird vibes emitting… his body stiffened his skin going cold and sharp pain ran over him as if his skin was peeling off. He heard Piccolo shout in anger and confusion as he too began to feel the change.

"Dad!" Xena looked on horrified as she watched her father slowly become encased in stone. She lifted a hand to stop it but Supreme Kai shouted at her.

"Don't touch him!" Supreme Kai ordered and turned his gaze to Piccolo who had also been turned to stone. "If you touch them they might break and then there will be no way to reverse what's been done!"

Xena snarled and looked back to Dabura her eyes flaring with anger and aching for revenge.

"Bastard!"

"Hahaha, I'll give you this one chance to run, take it or wind up like your friends!" Dabura warned, and retreated confidently to the ship.

"I'm going after him!" Xena declared. Her eyes turned to Supreme Kai. "You said if they break we won't be able to help them. So that must mean there's a way to get them back to normal, right?"

"Yes, the only way to help them is to do defeat Dabura."

"Good, that's exactly what I wanted to hear!" Xena jumped up over the rock and down to the ground.

"Xena wait!" Gohan immediately followed her. "Should we really be rushing in like this?"

"Gohan I just watched that sick demon turn my father to stone. He'd been aiming at ME and my father got in the way. I'll make him pay for what he did, and I'm going to crush the bug that killed those two humans before I could get a chance to beat them up for taking my energy. I'm livid! And I know exactly who to take it out on!" She rushed to the ship, and with a deep sigh Gohan ran after her.

 _ **Yay! Finally got the chapter up! I had originally wanted Radditz in the ship with the other, but felt he would just be replacing Vegeta in this instance and I decided to go a different route. I feel his character could be put to much further use down the line so I hope you'll all like the change.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: Don't Underestimate a Saiyan!**_


	12. Do not underestimate me!

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 12:** _ **Don't Underestimate Me!**_

Videl stared straight ahead as the plane guided along the path. Tarble had been quiet for some time and she wondered if he'd lost their energy signal or maybe he'd lost his own concentration. Glancing back in his direction she saw him sitting quietly in his seat looking out the side window while his two younger brothers argued and bumped heads over something off topic. It was a little scary at how mature he was for his age, his performance in the Junior martial arts championship was phenomenal, even against Goten who'd put up an impressive fight didn't have the technique or patience that his brother held.

Videl wondered if that was Zee's influence on him. Gohan was more like the younger siblings, playful and fun showing off his youth and kindness. Zee on the other hand was rough around the edges, studied, and cool with an adult like presence.

"Are we still heading in the right direction, Tarble?" Videl asked breaking Tarble's innate concentration on whatever had grabbed his attention out the window.

"Yes… we're a great distance away, I don't think we're gonna catch up for at least another hour maybe two."

"Should I get out and push again?" Goten suggested jerking a thumb behind him. Erasa and Gary's faces went blue with worry, remembering the ridiculous rocket speed the child had conjured.

"No, no that's okay Goten." Videl held up her hands and looked to Sharpener who nodded his head quickly in agreement. "I don't think this plane was built to go at those kinds of speeds, we nearly lost our wings on that last boost."

"But if we don't get there soon we're gonna miss all the action!" Bardock insisted with a full pout. "These fights never last that long, just look at the tournament. It only took five minutes to go through three matches!"

"Kid's got a point," Sharpener grunted. "Then again… we don't know what we're heading into. All of this is way over our head, Videl. Are you sure you wanna keep going?"

"I don't know… I mean I want to… something just keeps pulling me this to follow them. However, I think I see your point how this might be all over our heads." She lowered her head her hands fisting in her lap. "Their strength, not just Zee and Gohan's but all the members of their family… all of theme are more powerful than any of us could have imagined. They may even be stronger than my father."

"They are…" this from Tarble who stood up and narrowed his eyes on Videl. "Gohan didn't want me to tell you this because he thought you might get offended or something, but Hercule is not the strongest guy on the Planet."

"Are you serious?" Sharpener risked a glance behind him to stare at the kid. "Gohan is even stronger than Hercule?"

"I AM EVEN STRONGER THAN HERCULE! Hercule may be the stronger compared to most normal men but he's not invincible as he's made everyone believe!"

"Oh come on… we've all seen how strong he is." This from Gary who stood up and stared the kid down. "He defeated Cell! He saved the world."

"He didn't defeat Cell!" Tarble shook his eyes flashing cold. Goten and Bardock went quiet and sunk into their seats as the others soaked that fact in. "My parents didn't want to take credit because they don't want the attention or the spotlight. They like their lives, their privacy, so they let Hercule have the fame and the credit… but in truth my Dad was the one who fought and killed Cell!"

"Zee and Gohan…" Videl murmured her mind flashing back to the live broadcast of the cell games. "They were the two kids who fought against him… when that huge explosion erupted and the feed cut out, a lot of people thought the kids were killed."

"My Mom…" Tarble checked his story thinking that non of them wuld believe in the dragon balls and wishing people to life he twisted the truth. "My mom saved them. She got hurt real bad, and it made my dad go ballistic. He killed Cell in a rage. That is the truth!"

"Oh come on…" Gary pointed accusingly at the kid. "Videl don't tell me you're buying into all this. You of all people should know about your dad's strength."

"Yeah… yeah I would… and all I've seen is him lazing around the mansion, training in secret, watching others do the hard work and making excuses not to fight them. I believe them, Gary. I believe that Gohan's dad killed Cell." Videl looked in Tarble's direction. Those wide dark eyes close to tears. "Thank you for telling me the truth, Tarble."

His lips twitched and then spread into a smile. "You're welcome."

 **~Babidi's ship~**

Xena scowled at her fingers, she knew she should have tossed rock… but in a hasty last minute decision went paper instead. Her mother beating her out with a solid rock fist. "Damn it, I wanted to take him on."

"There'll be plenty of other opponents for you to take your rage on, little girl." Vega teased her daughter stretching her arms and bouncing on her toes for a warm up. "However this annoying little runt is mine."

"Who you calling a runt?" Pui Pui sneered in his screechy voice. "You're shorter than I am, and I am far stronger."

"Oh really?" Vega snickered. "Prove it then, I won't even move." She tabbed her cheek offering him a free punch.

Goku had to laugh a little at his wife's blatant confidence. While he knew she would win on sheer power level alone, he'd wonder if she'd ever learn to win with grace and humility… then again if she did.. She wouldn't be his Vega.

"Why is she giving him a free shot? She should be taking every advantage she can muster! This is reckless!" Supreme Kai swallowed hard staring in disbelief at the confidence of those standing around him. It wasn't just Vega's obvious arrogance… but he saw it too in Goku's lazy stance, Gohan's eager smile, and Xena's cool and composed posture. None of them seemed worried about the threat that lingered around them. Just what sort of fools had he'd tied himself to?

His heart thudded hard against his chest as Pui Pui launched himself, pummelling his first into her cheek. The woman hadn't moved, didn't even turn her head. Instead they all heard the crunch of Pui Pui's fingers breaking on contact and his shrill scream of pain. When he pulled back she grabbed his other hand tightly in her fist. She pulled him in so their were inches close and she whispered in ominous tones.

"Welcome to the end of your life…" she squeezed his bones cracking one at a time til Pui Pui took a knee screaming in agony. "I promise it's going to hurt."

With a quick thrust of her knee she sent him flying, Pui Pui went flying up onto the ceiling his back smacking and cracking against the metal before falling flat onto the ground. He hissed and panted between gritted teeth and lifted his yellow eyes to glare at his opponent, only to find her gone.

With a stare of astonishment he looked around, and a chill ran up his spine as he heard her voice from behind. "Looking for me, ugly?"

He staggered to his feet, turning just in time to get a fist to the face to send him crumbling back down to the ground.

Supreme Kai stood there astonished. His previous worries smoothed over into amazement at this woman's strength and agility. She was taking on Pui Pui like it was a casual stroll. Her petite body stretched tall and proud and her legs slowly rounded her prey. He skittered along the ground like a bug that knew he was about to be squashed.

Suddenly the atmosphere changed around them. The high winds rushing through her hair and she blinked and looked around.

"What the?"

"Hey what happened?" Gohan looked around, blocking his eyes from the red dust that was kicking up into his eyes. "Where are we?"

"It's that Babiddi. He's used his magic to change the room. He's trying to give that fighter the advantage."

"Oooh…' Goku grinned. "Now I see, should be interesting."

"Goku, please, this is hardly a casual matter."

"Relax," Xena grunted wishing she had the wall to lean on. "Nothing's changed…"

"How can you say that? Look where we are? Can't you feel the difference?"

"I can…"Xena turned her cool black eyes to the frightened Kai. "...and I'm telling you there's nothing to worry about."

Pui Pui laughed basking in the reality that his victory was assured by the appearance of his home. Though his mouth was bloody and hands swollen and bruised he would fight on, knowing he now had the advantage.

"Welcome to my home planet." He said bubbling in his own sick laughter. He picked up a rock holding it up. "You may have noticed that my home planet is a bit difference from yours. It's the gravity, ten times more powerful than Earth's." He let the stone fall, the heavy weight plopping down and causing a small crater at his feet. "Your chances of winning this battle are falling faster than that stone! You're facing certain death."

It was Vega's turned to laugh, but instead of the hooting laughter that Pui Pui was giving, hr laugh came out in a deep sinister growl. Her eyes cold and dark as the empty night sky, stare into him, and Pui Pui felt the cold chill return.

"Perhaps, if it was five hundred times normal gravity you may have an advantage, but ten? Heh, I don't even feel it." She crossed her arms standing stoic and confident.

"You're bluffing! There's no way!"

"Try me!"

Pui Pui rushed her, his hands punching out in a quick swift blur, but she dodged and shifted her body avoiding the punches easily. She ducked under kicking her leg up and sending him flying again. Pui Pui groaned as he yanked himself up and out of the rock and his eyes widened in horror.

Vega's body danced her fists raised and the gravity of the planet not affecting her in the slightest. She bounced and on her toes, circled her fists in the air her laughter echoed deep in her throat. Something was happening… she felt a familiar tug inside… a sick enjoyment at seeing her opponent's fear. She'd seen that look many times in her past, and for some odd reason.. It felt exhilarating. "Still think I'm bluffing?

Pui Pui refused to believe it. This was his home planet, he couldn't be beaten here, he NEVER lost a fight on his own planet. He snarled and roared rushing forward. He'd find her trick, figure out the secret of her power… and then...and then…

...it was all in slow motion, Vega appearing before him before he could close the distance in his sprint. Her hands pressed on his chest her cold eyes now matched with a twisted smile. He barely had time to let out a scream before his body exploded into dust from Vega's attack.

As the room went back to normal Vega tossed her hair over her shoulder sighing.

"That ended far too quickly. I'm amazed Babidi would make us fight such a weakling."

"Hey look, the floor's opening up. It looks like elevator shaft." Gohan pointed out rushing to it with his father beside him. Xena casually strolled over peering down the dark shaft.

"What are we waiting for then? Come on, Gohan." She jumped in, Gohan instantly following behind followed by Goku who let out a little woo hoo.

"Heh, Children, so easily amused." She floated down after them.

The next room was exactly the same as the last, a single door and a closed up shaft in the center. Xena let out a grunt and took a seat crossing her legs. Because of the order their Jenken match produced, She would fight last, and it irritated her. She was itching for a fight, especially since hers and Gohan's had ended so quickly.

She watched the others, her mind absorbing all the small intimate details… such as Supreme Kai's nervous hands and wary eyes, her mother's brief affectionate smile to Goku when he casually ran a knuckle over her cheek… Gohan's twitching feet, seemed he was as anxious as she was to fight. They all had their little silent tells to what they were thinking… and she wondered if any of them knew she was watching, and taking it all in.

"They sure are taking their time." Goku spoke suddenly putting his hands on his hips frowning. "Hey! Come on! I want to fight!"

"Bah! I don't see why we can't just bust down the door, or better yet blast this entire ship to oblivion."

"We can't do that!" Supreme Kai shouted. "That chain reaction could cause a massive explosion and release Majin Buu! That would be disasterous."

"Tch, I"m beginning to think this Majin Buu is only a waste of our time." This from Xena who stayed sitting her eyes closed now. "The same goes for that Dabura."

"What? How can you say such a thing?"

"I"m inclined to agree with my daughter." Vega put in her arms crossed and her nose turned up. "From what we've encountered so far I don't see the reason we should be so afraid of him. I watched his movements outside and the only thing I have to worry about is his spit. If I can avoid that then I'll have no problem beating him."

Xena opened her eyes, watching her mother's fist clench tightly… she was recalling her father falling victim and it was stirring up her anger.

"Your friend Kibito was careless."

"Goku, do you agree with her?"

"Yeah, if it had been a few years ago then maybe we would have had a problem, but now he's not so tough. Now Cell on the other hand…" Goku raised a finger in the air. "THAT was tough."

'I'm honestly getting sick of waiting." Xena continued tapping her fingers on her knees impatiently.. "I think it would be better if we did blow up the ship. Worst case scenario Majin Buu is released, but seeing as there's four of us, I doubt even he would be a problem."

"No! I will not allow that kind of risk!" Supreme Kai insisted stepping toward her. "If you insist on taking Babidi on we will do it on my terms, there will be no unnecessary risks."

"Risks? Tch…" Vega turned and glared at the Kai. "Listen you fool… we'll do this your way… but I'm sick and tired of hearing you doubt our strength. You came to us, you dragged us into this fight and now when we're finally invested you're holding us off! I suggest you stop underestimating your allies, particularly me!"

"Vega…" Goku tried to soothe but got his hand swat away.

"I've taken on more enemies than I can count, I've been through thousands of battles, and seen my share of evil, of power, and I'm telling you right now if you don't stop acting like a cowering fool my next punch will be pointed in YOUR direction. Supreme Kai or not UNDERESTIMATE ME AGAIN AND I WILL HURT YOU!"

Supreme Kai was at a loss of words. He'd never been spoken to like this before… and it both appalled him, and frightened him. He looked into Vega's eyes, the cold black color of them punctuating every threat she'd handed out. He went silent and backed away from the others.

Dabura took notice through the globe of the conflict. His eyes narrowed and the gears in his mind turning and whirling. This woman, he thought, was not like the others. There was something in the way that she spoke, in the way that she fought… he would have to keep a close eye on here to see if his hunch was right, and if so… what to do with this interesting knowledge.

 _ **Yay another chapter done. I hope you guys aren't too annoyed with me about the long pauses between posts. Adult responsibilities tend to limit what free time I have to write. Just know I'm not stopping until the story is done. I don't like to leave fanfics half finished so I promise I'll keep going no matter what.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: Exposed Weaknesses**_


	13. Exposed Weaknesses

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 13:** **Exposed Weaknesses**

Vega stared at her husband with keen interest. His fight with Yakon had sent warning bells chiming in her head. How had he generated that much power and still have plenty left to spare? There was something, a powersource he was reaching deep to pull from. After being married for seven or so years Vega thought she knew her husband inside and out when it came to his fighting routine, his power, and knowledge. However, this fight proved that wasn't the case.

She couldn't explain why that irritated her…

...okay yes she could. It irritated her because she believed she'd finally caught up with him. When they fought against Cell he was superior in strength. That much was clear after that stupid other world tournament. She'd finally reached Super Saiyan 2, had felt incredible after the transformation. She hadn't felt the wounds or exhaustion from her fight with Pikon all she'd felt was euphoria… and then cold bitter shame when one hit from her husband had made her crumble.

"Blast it," she muttered as they waited in the next room. She found herself pacing, irritated and anxious. The fight with Pui Pui had done nothing to settle her hunger and need for battle. She wanted a challenge, she wanted to prove her strength to everyone! Her cold black eyes narrowed on Gohan who was pumping himself up. He would be next, and then her daughter, and then she would finally have another turn… but that would be pointless if the next room was Babidi and Dabura.

If her daughter was the one to go against them…

Multiple feelings churned up inside her at that thought. She would be proud, obviously, that her offspring, her first born was the one to defeat them. Jealous of the fact she wouldn't be able to put her own skills against the new threat. Worse, much worse, she felt fear. She recalled the familiar cold and shivering in the pit of her stomach from the thought her daughter could possibly fail and lose her life, like she'd nearly done against Cell.

Her body tensed up and she grit her teeth and paced more. Goku took notice of her inability to sit still and took her by the shoulders.

"Vega, what's wrong?"

"We should have left Gohan and Xena outside." Vega quickly admitted turning her head to look over her shoulder at him. "I've got a bad feeling, Kakarott. I think you and I should handle this."

"You're just now saying this when it's Gohan's turn? Come on, they're not little kids anymore. They know what they're doing. You saw them at the tournament." Goku let her go so she could turn fully to him. He set his hands on his hips and gave his wife a confident smile. "Have some faith."

"The same kind of faith you had when you told Xena to fight Cell?" She growled low and caught Xena's attention. Noting this conversation was no longer private Goku cleared his throat and lowered his voice more.

"As I said, they're not kids."

"Stop whispering! I don't care if they can hear me or not!" She shouted suddenly, the whole room now looking in their direction. "I'm more than happy to tell them both that I don't think they're up to the task."

"What?" Xena narrowed her eyes and whirled around. "Not twenty minutes ago you were giving Supreme Kai a lecture about underestimating us and now you're the one having doubts?"

"This is a completely different argument."

"Not from where I'm standing, Mother!" Xena growled through her teeth. "Just what could possibly be putting these ridiculous doubts in your head?"

"Perhaps because every time you've gone up against a powerful enemy you choke halfway into battle putting yours and everyone else's lives in mortal danger." Vega snapped back.

"I was a child! Neither I or Gohan are little kids anymore and I'll prove it to you!" She whirled around on Gohan. "Gohan, let me go next!"

"What?" Gohan stopped stretching and stood up tall.

"I said let me go next." She strut to him placing a fist in his gi. "My mother doesn't think either of us can handle these clowns. She's about to find out different. Let me go next so I can prove her wrong."

"Ah, well… okay sure." Gohan nodded. "I don't mind. Just be careful, we don't know what to expect."

"Tch, please. I'll handle anything and anyone that walks through that door."

 _ **~Babidi's Lair~**_

Babidi stared deep into the ball, his eyes narrowing on the opponents. He could taste the anger and resentment and it made him smile.

"Well well, so the Supreme Kai's fools aren't as pure hearted as we first imagined. This one in particular…" He set his hands over Vega. "I sense a cold hardened heart lying deep beneath the surface. How wonderful."

"I had sensed as much," Dabura came out of his meditation chamber adjusting the cuffs on his sleeves. "When I watched her fight with Pui Pui I sensed she was not like the others. Her daughter is stubborn but she's as soft as the rest of them. The mother on the other hand… there's something sinister she's hiding."

"Shall we take a little peek then?" Babidi snickered and glanced back. "Or would you like to have a little fun, first?"

"I didn't spend hours in the meditation room just to get brushed off. Let me go against them… gather some energy for Majin Buu before we decide to pull the rug out from under them."

"I do like the way you think, Dabura. Go on then, pound some mercy into those fools."

 _ **~Fighting Hall~**_

"This is kind of exciting isn't it? It's like being on a game show. I wonder who's behind door number three." Gohan chuckled earning a grunt from Xena. She adjusted her gloves and tightened them into fists.

"They could call themselves beaten as far as I'm concerned." Xena boasted.

"I can't wait to see how strong you've gotten." Goku pointed out. "We only got a glimpse when the two of you were fighting at the tournament."

"Please, these two were too busy going to school and going out on dates to do any serious training." Vega humphed.

"Shows what you know, mother. As it so happens I've done plenty of training with Dad. He's just as strong as you are now."

"As if, your father may have had a massive rise in power but he was stupid enough to get turned to stone. He's got a baboon brain as far as I'm concerned."

Xena was about to whirl on her, her anger spitting from her eyes… but the whirling of the door drew her attention. All the confidence from her stanced started to sink as Dabura stepped through.

"What? No! Why is he here?"

"I must admit," Dabura started standing tall and threatening as he eyed the room. "You've done better than I had expected. However I am your opponent now here on stage three, which means you'll progress no further."

"Ha," Vega snickered. "Your boss must be pretty nervous if he sent out his number one guy. Why doesn't he just come out himself. Or is he too scared?"

Dabura turned his eyes to Vega, a knowing smirk spreading over his lips.

"Let's dispense with the idol talk. I'd much prefer it if you just attack, all of you at once."

"No way, jerk!" Xena stepped forward and jerked a thumb at herself. "I'm your opponent, no one else. I've got my sense of pride to protect."

Gohan backed up and whispered to his father.

"You really sure about this Dabura guy?"

"He'll be a tough opponent, but nothing Xena can't handle." Goku glanced at his wife who stood ramrod straight, arms crossed and her fingers nervously tapping against her forearms. "She has what it takes, Vega knows it… but when you're a parent you try to do whatever you can to protect your kids, even if it means bruising their pride a little."

"Impudent Fool! You will fight me here and now!" Dabura dropped into a stance, Xena's natural arrogance ruffling his feathers.

"Wait, Dabura… it might now be such a bad idea to move you to a different location. You see in order to revive Majin Buu we must have the ship completely in tact."

"Then send us to a planet similar to this one." He said sinisterly. "I don't want an unfair advantage."

Xena smirked and cracked her knuckles. The room changed, wind rushing through her hair as they now stood upon a rocky surface. Lakes and rivers crowding around them along with tall pillars of rock.

"You ready to die, girl?"

"You ready to grovel, fool?" She fell into her stance, fists out eyes narrowed. The two fighters stared each other down calm and patient, waiting for a sign to initiate the fight. Xena's eyes strained for sound.. .and she could hear the slit stir of rock as gravel kicked loose from erosion and pressure.

Her eyes sharpened and she launched, moving fast she jumped and flipped over pushing her fist out. It matched against Dabura's in a ricochet of power, the ground cracking under its pressure. Xena started out direct, matching fists and kicks getting a feel of Dabura's strength and style.

She could sense that physical hand to hand wasn't his bravado… he had secret powers hiding under the tough bravado… more tricks like his spit technique. She'd have to be careful and keep an eye on his movements for anything suspicious.

She shifted, twisting her body as his hand sliced the air narrowly missing her by inches. The ground cracked in a perfect straight line. Her eyes widened with realization and she jumped away quickly getting distance from him. His arms sliced again, waves of air, sharp as knives cutting through anything in its path.

Gohan's fingers itched. He'd wanted his chance, but knew how important it was to Xena to prove her strength to her mother. He eyed Vega, saw the tension in her stance, and found himself worrying as well. He knew Xena was strong. They hadn't spent these last few months together without him learning anything. Xena was dedicated, tough, and focused. His own skills were nothing to sneeze at but he couldn't compare his own training to hers. Xena's whole life was her training, both mental and physical. If Xena couldn't defeat Dabura, there was no way he could have been any different.

That one sour fact made him scowl and stare at the ground. Shame washed over him. He'd been so busy concentrating on what his mother had wanted. He'd studied hard, sharpened his intellect and made school his entire life… and had ignored his Saiyan instincts and needs.

At that moment Gohan made a promise to himself. He would work harder, he would keep up his studies but also he would train everyday, hard and eager. Nodding to himself he turned his attention back to the fight and had to shield his eyes as Xena let out a powerful blast that rocketed across the sky and pressed against Dabura's outstretched palm.

Vega bit her thumb growling deep in her throat. The fight was unnerving, and there a raw twisting in her gut that made her edgy and wnat to scream. "I can't stand much more of this. She's toying with him at this point. She knows his battle style, why doesn't she just-"

"Easy, Vega…" Goku placed his hands on his wife's shoulders. "Xena's got this, she's handling it well. Look at her eyes… she's focused… she's just being cautious that's all."

"Too cautious… she's not breaking any defenses because Dabura can clearly read what she's doing. They're both playing around."

"Yeah but the fight's just started." Gohan pointed out. "It would be too risky to go all out in the first run isn't it?"

"I agree," Goku nodded. "Xena will kick it up, she's just looking for the right opportunity… THERE!"

"HAAAA!" Xena reappeared behind Dabura her fist smartly connecting with his cheek making his head twist and his body tumble fast into the ground. She didn't hesitate, she fired ball after ball of energy shredding up the ground and encasing her opponent in blinding heat.

Dabura shouted out enraged by the attack he pushed up and rose above it. Xena barely had time to stop her blasts before another was directed at her. The fiery red ball was aimed straight at her and she backed handed it cursing and crying out in pain as the ball seared right through her glove burning the flesh. She looked at it and snarled. She phasing away from the next blast she used her speed to quickly close the gap. She beat her good fist into his gut, and followed it up with a knee. He choked up saliva and swirled some around his tongue spitting. She blocked it with her hand and quickly removed the other glove before it could encase her whole body.

Now bare fisted she matched blows with him again, their speed sending them careening all across the rocky hills. Goku's eyes zipped back and forth following their movements and for the first time since the battle started he scowled.

"What does Xena think she's doing? A direct attack isn't going to work on this guy. She should know better."

"This is what happens when you don't train properly for seven years. She's letting her mind do all the work instead of her body. She's lost her fighting sense. It's pathetic."

"You're all wrong!" Gohan clenched his fists. "She'll be fine, she's just trying out different strategies, keeping him guessing."

"That may be but it's a waste of time and energy. She should rely more heavily on her instinct." Goku sighed and put his hands on his hips. "I hate to say it but unless she straightens up one of us will have to take over."

"Just give her time!" Gohan pleaded. "She can beat him, I know she can! Give her a chance!"

"She's got five minutes, and then I'm yanking her out!" Vega determined tapping her fingers irritatedly "I've had enough of watching her dance around."

Supreme Kai, who'd been fairly quiet during the fight watched with keen interest. He could see the points Goku and Vega were pointing out, but there was something else about Xena's fighting style that he was finding odd. She was using instincts… she dodged too well, and too cleanly not to have cut them off completely. It was looking more like she was purposely dragging out the fight, showing off many aspects of her fighting style. Why though… why was she dragging something out instead of finishing it off? What was she trying to prove?

Xena was lost in her own thought. She'd dragged out the battle long enough to give Dabura the confidence he needed. He was too carefully guarded and too creative in his style to just blow straight into this. In order to get him to make a mistake she'd have to give him false security. So she took the next blow purposefully, and instantly regretted it as the burn singed her top to torso and sent her spiralling through the rock. She coughed and cursed quickly moving out of the way as another blast obliterated the ground she'd been on. She quickly went to the sky, jumping onto a pillar to catch her breath.

"It's time to put an end to this little cat and mouse game." Dabura ragged as she reached out his arm, a sword apparating into it. One swish from it cut three pillars of rock cleanly in two. Well shit!

"Blast It!" Xena was soon dodging and ducking. With no weapon of her own to clash against it she was forced to go on the defense. She caught him off guard a few times maneuvering her body so she could beat his grip aside and land a punch, but it didn't do her much good. She'd have to find a way to disarm him and fast if she wanted to keep her head on her shoulders.

Though it was risky she met him head on. She grabbed the sword with her palms wincing as the blades dug into the flesh and made her bleed. She snarled and grit her teeth, her super saiyan power glowing hot and vibrant. She screamed snapping the blade in two. Dabura, snarling at the fact his blade was broken, narrowed his eyes on Xena. She was tougher than she appeared. Despite being burned and rattled she was barely breathing heavy. Had she been toying with him the whole time? The thought irritated and unnerved him.

"That's it I've had enough!" Vega shouted up at her daughter and pointed to the ground. "On the ground, Xena. I can't stomach anymore. You let me take it from here!"

"What?" Xena turned her head glaring. "No! This is my fight, you stay out of it."

"You're disgracing yourself and me with this silly charade. Now get down here this instant!"

"I said no! I started this battle, and I will finish it alive or dead!"

Those words brought on a cold chill through Vega's bones and causing her fire to erupt.

"If you don't forfeit right now young lady I'll force you to myself!"

Dabura watched the interaction, his lips twitching. It would seem that it was time to change out fighters after all.

"Master Babidi, please return us to the ship. I think it's time we had a little change in opponents." Dabura called out silencing the mother daughter argument. The scenery changed again and Dabura stepped calmly to the door looking over his shoulder with a confident smirk.

"If you'll excuse me, we have a new recruit to prep. Please wait here while we get your new opponent ready for battle."

"Get back here I'm not done with you, Dabura!" Xena rushed the door and slammed palms first into it. She beat her hand on it snarling and whirling back. "Damn it!"

"It's your own fault for dragging that battle out. What the hell were you thinking taking all those unnecessary risks?"

"I was setting him up to fall and fall hard. I had him exactly where I wanted him mother. You had no right stopping the fight!"

"I had every right, you were making a fool of yourself and that's not how we Saiyans do battle. Only brute strength and wit wins out in battle, that's what important, not any elaborate shenanigans you could possibly conjure up. Next time leave the fighting to the professionals and stay home!"

"That does it!" Xena stomped over and grabbed her mother's gi by the front. Both Goku and Gohan took sides trying to pull the women apart. "I've had enough of you looking down on me! As far as I'm concerned you're not my mother, BULMA is!"

Vega gasped and before she could think her hand whirled up and smacked her daughter cleanly on the face.

"How… DARE you… You ungrateful, spoiled little brat! Do you have ANY idea the trials I've gone through for you, child? The dangers I've put myself in to protect you? It was YOUR fault your father was murdered by Frieza, and again your fault he was turned to stone! It was YOUR fault I had to go gallivanting across the galaxy to save you from Frieza and Nappa, and your fault I was killed by Cell! You've been nothing but a hindrance to me since the day you were conceived! If I'm not a mother to you after all that then fine. I wish you'd NEVER BEEN BORN!"

Xena staggered from that, her eyes shocked and angry and tear threatened to spill. She felt them and quickly lifted her chin whirling away to storm to the other side of the room. The room fell into complete silence. No one knowing what to say or do.

Babidi in the meantime was laughing like an idiot watching the entire event.

"OH this is just TOO PERFECT! Just you wait my dear…" Babidi touched the glass over Vega's face watching the emotions run over and leak through the cracks of her wall. "Soon you won't have a daughter to worry about… because you'll have killed her with your own two hands."

 _ ***rubs hands together excitedly* Finally we're getting to the juicy bits. Hope you all are enjoying the story so far.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: The Darkness Inside**_


	14. The Darkness Inside

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 14: The Darkness Inside**

"Vega you need to calm down." Goku took his wife's shoulders in his hands staring deep into her eyes. "Look I know what Xena said hurt you, but she's a good fighter. You need to trust her to take care of herself or she'll always need that crutch."

"I don't care about her, not anymore. She can go ahead and get herself killed." Vega, struggling with composure fisted her hands into Goku's shirt before shoving him off. "She's not my daughter, she said so herself."

"You know she didn't mean it, and neither did you about wishing she hadn't been born." He turned her back and kissed her forehead. "The two of you will work past this, you always do. Right now we've got to remain focused and we can't be sniping at each other."

"Goku is right," The Supreme Kai agreed his eyes focused on the door where Dabura had slipped away.

"We should be concentrating on what exactly Dabura and Babidi's plan is. It's very unlikely that they've found another ally so soon… and one that could replace Dabura."

Babidi stared into the globe laughing with utter glee.

"What an amazing discovery we've made Dabura. Such a blackened soul, I'm amazed she managed to keep it hidden behind that shell of light. Death, destruction, arrogance, oh yes, yes, she's perfect! Just the warrior we need to eliminate the others."

"I sense the daughter has darkness of her own, but not as much, and she's not as powerful as her mother is."

Babidi nodded in agreement.

"You're right, and who knows she might be more powerful than all of them. And when I'm done with her she'll have twice the strength she possess. Now then… Ba bada ba PA!" Babidi pierced through the light of Vega's soul, and invaded the mind where her darkest memories lie.

Vega felt the intrusion immediately and let out a choked gasp before clutching her head and falling to her knees. Vega danced and wobbled as her head spun and pounded and her vision began to blur.

"Vega! Vega what's wrong?!" Goku immediately in a panic held his wife

"Something's… attacking me….mnnng inside!"

Xena, who had been bound determined to ignore her mother for the rest of day, went pale with realization. "Shit!"

The voices around Vega began to buzz and fade and she was back in the past again, hearing Frieza's sick laughter echoing and joining that of Babidi's.

" _Did you think that it would be so easy to hide your true self? I know what you were, I know what you are. A princess of a dying race, proud and strong… and a pawn of the darkness in your own heart."_

"Supreme Kai what's happening to her?" Goku pleaded trying to keep his wife calm. Her screams of pain and the backlash of the bond masking him emotional and frustrated.

"Babidi is trying to controll her

"No! Get out of my head!" Vega screamed and panted.

"That's it Vega! Keep fighting him! Don't let him take control!" Supreme Kai begged. He looked back to Goku. "She struggles because her heart is impure. She needs to fight him off or he'll succeed."

"So there's nothing we can do?!" Xena demanded gritting her teeth watching her struggle and cry out in agony.

"I wish there was but it's all in her psyche. She needs to fight against him on her own and not give in or he'll take full control."

"Vega!" Goku grabbed her shoulders "Do you hear that? Hey! Come on yours stronger than him! You've been through too much and fought too hard."

" _You hunger for darkness, violence, power. It is what you were born and bred for."_

"No...Kakarott is right...I'm not that person anymore, I'm not that weak, and I'm not that stupid!"

" _Oh but you are… you pretend to be happy, pretend to be content in your life. A loving husband, a few happy children, and suddenly the world is all smiles and fairy tales… but you've seen the real truth."_

The pain was excruciating Vega fell to her knees beating her fists on the ground, her screams horrible, leaving her comrades stunned and fearful.

"He's inside!" Vega called out to her mate. "He's inside my head, Kakarott!"

Panicked, Goku grabbed her face to make her stare at him.

"Don't let him in, push him out!" He pleaded and placed his forehead to hers trying to reach her through their bond. He could feel the pain, and clenched his teeth against it. He could sense her struggling, pushing back the words and the lure that was pulling her into the dark.

"That's it, keep fighting him Vega! Don't let him win!"

" _That silly man knows nothing of your struggles. He's a simple fool. You know the evils of the world, the viciousness, the cruelty, and were once a part of it. You embraced it, embodied it, you can become that again!"_

"NO!" Vega snapped at him. "I know what I once was, I know the darkness in my own heart and I can't change that. However, if you think for one second that I'm going to let you, a whiny, sadistic little cockroach, make me lose all that I have ever loved and cherished in this world, then think again! You have no power over me! You've got nothing!"

This was not how it was supposed to happen, Babidi thought. There was something else pulling her back to the light, and keeping him from entangling her in the web of darkness. He snarled and in her mind Vega heard the echoing growl of Babidi's frustration.

" _If you will not accept what I offer than you're of no use to me. You had your chance, my dear, and now you can sleep forever, tormented by your own darkness! Ba bada ba PA!"_ He cast the curse on her, sealing her mind from any outside sources so she could tumble into her own dark memories and relive them over and over.

Goku shouted as he was shoved back by the sudden release of magic power. Vega screamed brutally and tossed her head up. Her body which had gone super Saiyan began to vibrate and ripple. The glowing light faded and her eyes went black and her body fell limp.

Goku shook off the shock and held his head. He took one look at Vega and his eyes and voice filled with panic.

"No Vega!" He crouched down hoisting her up. She lay still as death, her eyes open but shaded black. Her face frozen in a look of absolute fear. "What did he do to her?"

"He's cursed her. He's trapped her in a nightmare. She'll relive the most devastating and tragic moments of her life over and over in a never ending dream." Supreme Kai knelt beside her touching her face. "Since he couldn't control her, Babidi did the next best thing, and used her own dark past against her."

"Mom…" Xena trembled fighting back the tears. Shame and guilt washed over her then anger began to spear up and she held her chest. "That does it! I've had enough!" She stood up tall and pointed a hand straight down. "I'm blowing this ship to hell!"

"No! Xena wait!" Supreme Kai started to protest but Goku grabbed him.

"It's too late! Gohan come on!" Goku shouted at Gohan clutching his wife in one arm and supreme Kai in the other. Gohan rushed back, barely able to tapped his father's shoulder before they're whizzed back up above the ship just as it exploded in a rush of light and smoke.

"Whoa! That was close. Thanks dad." Gohan lowered to the ground rushing forward to the smoking wreckage and calling out Xena's name. "Xena! XENA!"

"Shut up," Xena said between coughs as she rose out of the smoke, burned and shaking with anger and irritation at her own loss of temper. "I hear you." She jumped as Gohan's arms came around her holding her close.

"Geez, don't ever scare me like that again!"

"Hmmph," she couldn't help it. Her lips curved and she let her head rest on his shoulder. "No promises."

Gohan smiled as well and looked over her shoulder to their parents.

"We need to get your mom to someone that can help. Doesn't look like the fact you blew Babidi and his ship up released her curse."

"He may be still alive...it's possible he used his magic to protect himself...Hmmm?" Xena's focus suddenly shifted as she sensed multiple power levels coming into their direction. "Do you guys feel that?"

"Feel what?" Gohan closed his eyes sensing around him, and picking up the slow moving energies heading straight for them. "Yeah, yeah, I do. Dad! Someone's coming!"

Goku reluctantly let go of his wife and stretched his own senses.

"There's four low power levels, but the others are concealed… three of them." Goku stared out in the distance barely registering the little dot in the sky that was Videl's plane.

"Tarble…" Xena growled low under her throat. "It's our brothers, why'd Videl have to go and get others involved? This is no place for kids and humans." She turned her attention upward. There was the proof behind her words.

Babidi floated above the wreckage of his ship, anger boiling deep inside him. The little brat had destroyed his ship and nearly all of his men. How the hell was he supposed to get home after Majin Buu destroyed this pathetic planet.

"You insolent little brat. How dare you blow up my ship? Do you have any idea what you've cost me?" Babidi clenched his firsts snarling down at the group. Xena just sent him a withering stare and spoke without ever looking away from her target.

"Kakarott… you have to get those guys out of here. Take them all to the lookout, maybe Dende or Mr. Popo will know something that could help mom."

"They might be able to help, but what about Majin Buu? We need to finish off Babidi and Dabura before they can release him."

"Gohan and I will take care of that." Xena promised. "Gohan's a little rusty but with the two of us working together this time we'll stand against him."

"She's right dad," Gohan insisted pumping a fist. "You need to look after Vega, if anything happens to her it'll be Cell all over again. Leave this to us!"

Goku hesitated, staring down at his wife with an inner struggle that ripped his heart in so many pieces. He was proud of Xena and Gohan for stepping up, worried if they'd be able to handle it, frustrated knowing he wouldn't be able to fight to his full strength knowing Vega was in this state of mind.

"Alright, I'm trusting you two. I'll do what I can, and then come back to help you, so stay tough, and do your best."

"Don't worry, Kakarott." Xena stood straight staring up at the glowing bubble of Babidi and Dabura. "I have no intention of losing."

"I'm staying behind as well. This is my responsibility and I'll see it through to the end."

"alright… oh and take these." He hands them the bag of Senzu beans. "there's only three left. So only use them if you absolutely need them."

"Understood now get those guys out of here before they're dragged in."

The three young boys jumped out of the plane as soon as it landed. They shimmer up the rocks with Videl and the others behind.

"Hey careful on those rocks you guys! This isn't a playground!" Video shouted and let out a sigh. "Man those three are a handful!"

"I think they broke your plane on that last boost, Videl." Sharpener close the hood wiping his hands clean of grease "Engine's shot. We're stuck here unless you've got another capsule handy."

"You're stuck…" Videl murmured tempted to fly up to prove her point but didn't think it would do any good. "I'm sure one of the others have one. If not we can always carry you." She stepped forward and let out a little shriek as Goku suddenly appeared in front of her.

"Easy…" He set Vega down and took Videl gently by the shoulders steadying her.

"What happened to her?" Sharpener knelt by Vega his eyes wide in horror and disbelief. Erasa and Gary peek their heads out of the

"We need to go. It's not safe for you here." Goku looked straight into Videl's eyes. "The real fight is starting, and you all are in great danger here."

"We came to help fight."

"You can't help. You'll just get in the way. I'm taking you all someplace safe. Where are my sons?" Goku looked around for his boys.

"They climbed up the cliffs, they're-"

The first explosion rippled the ground and caused rocks and sand to toss and kick in the wind. Goku grabbed Videl before she could topple over. Erasa squealed and screamed ducking back inside with Gary. Sharpner hoisted up Vega's body and ran into the plane.

"If that's the fight you're talking about then I say let's get out of here!"

"The boys!" Videl clung on pointing up at the cliffs. "They're there!"

"Get inside the plane and get going in the opposite direction. I'll find the boys ad I'll find you! Go Now!" Goku shoved her to the plane then ran up the cliffside. He found the boys huddled together ducking between rocks as overhead Xena and Dabura fought hand to hand beating each other off with blasts and fists.

"Go Xena Go!" Tarble shouted shielding his younger brothers but his eyes staying sharp on the fight.

"Tarble!" Goku grabbed his shoulder and yanked him up and tugged Goten and Bardock each under an arm. "Come one, this place isn't safe!"

"Dad!" The three boys called out at once and Tarble turned around his eyes, so much like his mothers, turned fierce.

"I'm staying! Xena may need help!"

"Does she look like she needs help?" Goku glanced up and narrowed his eyes. "And in any case she has Gohan with her, you three will only distract her."

"Gohan is an even bigger distraction! He hasn't been training like I have! I'm a better fighter, I know I am! Let me help!"

"You want to help, then you help your mother!"

"What?" Tarble's eyes softened a moment in confusion. "What happened to mom?"

"She let herself be distracted and the wizard cursed her. Xena and Gohan have to stay focused, they have to concentrate on the fight or they'll lose for certain! Now let's go! I won't tell you again, Tarble!"

Struggling between loyalties Tarble glanced back up at the sky. The two fighters matched in steel grips pressing on each other's power causing lightning to ripple and the air to stir wildly around them. With a heavy heart he gripped his father's Gi and let him take him and his brothers away from the fight.

The plane wouldn't take off, but it didn't need to. The moment Goku and the boys were on board Goku touched the plane and called out to the group. "Everyone hold on tight!"

The next shockwave sent the plane tumbling and Goku shut his eyes pressing fingers to his forehead and vanishing the plane away from battle and chaos.

 _ **Sorry it took me so long to get this up. If you've been looking at my facebook posts you'll have seen that my cat decided to have a lil fun with my computer which was the main cause for the delay. Thanks for your patience I hope to have the next chapter up a whole lot sooner.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: Majin Buu**_


	15. Majin Buu

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 15: Majin Buu**

Before the fight had begun Xena had taken stock of the situation. Somehow Babidi had managed to save Buus pod and it thumped and throbbed with life behind him and Dabura. Babidi sent a backward glance to his rubbled ship and sneered. With anger like that, he thought, perhaps he should have gone after the daughter first. No matter… he would find a way off this planet and the girl would pay dearly for the trouble.

"Dabura, Majin Buu's pod is still magically connected to the trouble makers. So be sure to damage them greatly… and quickly." He added when he saw that Majin Buu's meter was only a quarter away from being at full power.

"No holding back then…" Dabura smirked. Opposite of them Xena was already letting her power flare to life. They had to settle this fast.

"I'll distract Dabura…" She told Gohan and Supreme Kai. "You two will have to take care of Babidi and the pod. Once I have Dabura's full attention let loose a Kamehameha that will send that thing to hell."

"We must be cautious." Supreme Kai warned. "Dabura gets any sense of what we're about he'll most surely try to attack us."

"Leave Big Red up to me. Just get ready to blast that thing to smithereens. It may wake Majin Buu but-." She cut off as Dabura made the first move. He had her by the throat and dragged her by it. She quickly disarmed squeezing the nerves in his wrist and gasping for air when he released her. She immediately went for an upper body strike but he took to the air making her follow his movement.

 **~Dende's Lookout~**

The plane landed with a harsh thud on the tiles of the lookout. Dende and Mr. Popo let out startled gasps as people fell out of all the doors in various states of distress. Goku and his boys curled around Vega who still lay still as death, Videl blinked wide eyed and stared at her surroundings with awe. Erasa and Gary knelt on the ground both looking a bit queasy, and Sharpner just looked shell shocked, unable to move and barely blink.

"What the hell was that?!" Sharpner suddenly shouted and fumbled out of the cockpit to stare at Goku. "Where are we? How did we get here?"

"Where are the mountains? The battle? Xena and Gohan?" Videl circled and stepped up to the edge to look out and let out a cry of disbelief. "We're in the sky! We're floating on a platform in the sky!"

"Goku…" Dende approached and knelt down to place his hands over Vega.

"Hey Dende… I'm sorry about the sudden drop in, but I didn't really have much choice." Goku tried to explain his face full of frustration, anger and fear.

"I've been sensing all that's happened. You were right to bring everyone here. They'll be safe for the meantime."

"Vega… is there anything you or Mr. Popo can do for her?" He pleaded with him as Dende examined and let his hands glow over her mind.

"Piccolo is better at the psyche than I am… but I'll do what I can. Mr. Popo will you please ready the meditation chamber. I'll need to be able to use my full concentration."

"Of course." Mr. Popo bowed his head. "I'll have a meal prepared for our guests as well."

"Goku," Dende turned his eyes to Goku again. We'll get Vega comfortable, then you should probably let the others at the tournament what has happened.

"Right…" though his voice agreed Goku couldn't look away from Vega, his hand clenched in hers. Dende let out a sigh then turned his eyes to his children. He offered them a polite smile.

"You boys must be hungry. Mr. Popo will have food ready for all of you."

"I'm not hungry," Tarble muttered bitterly and turned his back on them to walk to the edge. His eyes were stormy as he watched the clouds loop and swirl under them. He could feel his sister's life force so fierce and vibrant and wish he were down there with her. He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Videl.

"You're worried about them aren't you?" Videl smiled and knelt down hugging him. "I am too… but they're strong. They'll win."

"My parents aren't with them. This is the first real battle they've taken on by themselves. What if they…"

"Don't think that!" Videl insisted. "You have to believe in them, Tarble. You have to believe they'll win, or you're just jinxing them."

"I don't want to jinx them… I believe in them." He quickly rubbed his eyes with his sleeve. "I BELIEVE IN YOU!" Videl smiled and turned her head out. She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted as well.

"I BELIEVE IN YOU!"

"ME TOO!" Goten ran up shouting and Bardock immediately followed suit. They shouted out at the sky and prayed that their beliefs and voices carried miles to Xena and Gohan.

 **~Meanwhile~**

Krillin slumped into his seat as he watched Mr. Satan collect his reward. He wasn't sure why he'd let that guy talk him into letting him win again. He supposed the prize money had done that. After all if he had the prize money, his wife wouldn't be too unhappy.

"You did the right thing, Krillin." Eighteen assured him and kissed his cheek. "It was smart of you to ask for the prize money in return for his victory. I would have done exactly the same thing."

"Aww thanks babe." Krillin chuckled and he pat Marron's hair. His cute little firefly, half the time he could hardly believe he was a father… but life's funny that way.

"Oh I'm tired of just sitting here!" Chichi complained bouncing her little girl in her arms. "Can't we go already?"

"Goku and the others aren't back… but I'm sensing a strange flutter of readings a great distance away. There's trouble brewing somewhere."

"Oh that's just great. If there's trouble then I just know Gohan and Goku are involved." Yamcha held his hands out for Chyna and she passed her to him. She wrang her hands looking around. "Now my little Goten is missing too. What is going on!"

"Well whatever it is I'm not gonna just sit here to find out. If trouble is brewing then we're gonna need the dragon balls." Bulma stood up, hands on hips. "Luckily I always keep the dragon radar in hand if I ever need it."

"I'm going with you!" Chichi decided. "I can't just sit worrying. I'll go crazy."

"Not like you haven't done that already." Oolong snickered and earned a konk on the head for his trouble.

"So does this mean we're all going on a Dragon Ball hunt? I'm in!" Krillin stood up flexing his muscles. "I've never actually been a part of the hunt before so this ought to be entertaining."

"I can only assume the boys have gone out looking for the trouble." She looked to the fighters of the group. "Can any of you sense where they are?" Bulma asked.

"They're no where in the stadium. I actually sensed Tarble's energy taking off in that direction, but it vanished as fast as it flared." Yamcha pointed with his free arm.

"Well that's just great, they probably went after Gohan and Xena once they realized something was up." Chichi grumbled.

"Aww if they're with Gohan and Xena I wouldn't worry too much." Krillin offered a smile. "They've got Goku, Piccolo and every other Super Saiyan under the son. What could go wrong?"

 **~Back to the Fight~**

Xena screamed out as she sent Dabura tumbling to the ground. She took the opportunity to breathe before she was whirling and dodging pink beams of light. The guy was no longer messing around. He was out for the kill.

"Fine then, if you're serious then so am I!" She went super saiyan 2 letting the power rise in her and teh extra boost pump her full of energy. She spiralled down dodging two beams before appearing in front of him and punched him full in the face.

Gohan had to resist the urge to watch the fight. The energy Xena was letting out was tingling his senses making his own energy buzz and burn inside him. He did his best to keep his concentration firmly on the glowing sack in front of him. There was more energy emitting from it, but this energy was more like a dark void that threatened to suck him in. A pool of dread pitted in his stomach and had him swallowing hard.

"I've never felt anything like it. It's so cold…"

"That is the true essence of Majin Buu. He's a ruthless killing machine and we mustn't let this go any further." Babidi's sudden laughter surprised him. The little wizard was outmatched and alone so what could he possibly be laughing about? He eyed the pod his eyes widening when he saw how fast the level was raising up. "What? How is that possible? They've only barely begun fighting!"

"I thought you'd be surprised." Babidi snickered. "The look on your face is just icing on the cake. You see not only has Majin Buu been feeding off the energy of your comrade up there." He pointed skyward at Xena. "He's also feeding off the negative energy flowing out of the one I cursed."

"Vega…" Gohan went pale as he breathed out the name. "You mean he's been feeding off of Vega this entire time?" Babidi laughed again.

"Yes! And at this rate, Vega's sorrow and fear will be the very thing that will bring Majin Buu back to full power! Even if you kill me, the curse will remain and Majin Buu will be resurrected!"

"Not Good!" Gohan turned his eyes up at Xena. She had her hands full with Dabura and couldn't help him… he had to stop it, stop everything. "Dad!" Gohan shouted at his father hoping he could hear him through mental link. "Dad can you hear me?!"

Up at the Lookout Goku's focus snapped when he heard his son's panicked voice. "What is it Gohan? Is there trouble? Do you need help?"

"Yes… No… I mean… Babidi is using Vega's energy to fuel Buu. You have to snap her out of the curse!"

"We're trying!" Goku snapped his eyes worried and fretful as he looked down at his wife. Dende knelt by her in the full white room his hands over her temples trying to break through. "Dende's trying to break the curse but Babidi's put some sort of barrier around her mind. He can't get through."

Damn it, Gohan thought looking back at the pod his busy brain trying to think.

"There must be something more we can do… what about the bond? You said you and Vega have been psychically linked before. Is there anyway you can break through the barrier using that? "

"Why didn't I think of that? Gohan you're a genius!" He whirled around and surprised Dende by pushing him back and straddling his wife. He leaned over her pressing his forehead to hers. "Vega…" He looked into those black orbs deep as pits. "Hear me… Feel me… Let me in."

He closed his eyes and felt himself sink into the black with her. He gasped as the cold hit him first. Then the fall as he was sent spiraling into the dreams. He spotted Vega. She stood in shadow watching like a ghost as a younger version of herself stood as a triad in front of a crumbled city. Screams echoed and fire erupted in huge bursts of wild energy. Buildings crumbled as her, Nappa, and Radditz destroyed city after city with sadistic calm and enjoyment.

She stared herself down, Her past self, shelled in armor and a guise. She'd been the dark prince of Saiyans. A warrior dedicated to fighting and growing stronger, and to destroying anything that kept her from achieving her goals. She didn't care if they were evil or innocent, they all had to die.

"This is what you really want." She heard her dark self say. "Power. Control, the thrill of eliminating life, of taking anything you want by fear and force! You want to be feared, you want to be worshipped!"

"That's not true!"

Kakarott's voice caught Vega off guard. She turned her head to see him come through the fire and stand beside her. He stared down at her former self. "Vega, MY Vega, would never want this. She's not that person anymore. She may have pride, and strength, but she's not a murderer."

"How quickly we forget." Dark Vega laughed and the scenery changed, as did she. As the worlds rushed by them, the Vegeta guise faded away to her female self, still clad in Saiyan armor. They now floated in space above the white frost planet where Frieza was once based in. Goku narrowed his eyes and watched the little planet explode like a firework, scattering rock and debris all around them, til all that was left was space dust.

"Even after you began to put that barrier of light around me." Dark Vega said, her sad face sarcastic and taunting. "Revenge and anger boiled so deep inside. You pleaded with me not to go, not to take revenge out this way, but I refused to listen. I wanted to see his destruction, I wanted to see his home go to dust from my own power! He destroyed my people, my home all because he was a pathetic coward behind that tyrant facade. He knew one day a Saiyan would rise to overpower him, and he tried to change his fate and he failed. I got to see him cower under my power, I got to eliminate his home planet just as he had eliminated mine… and my own spawn, my daughter, the daughter he tried to take from me finally killed him! REVENGE IS SWEET!"

"Don't listen to her!" He clamped hands over his Vega who stood still and cold her eyes looking on sorrowful at her former self. "You're stronger than this. You're better than this. It doesn't matter if you've made mistakes in the past, you've more than made up for it with all you've fought for and sacrificed."

"You don't understand, Kakarott." She finally spoke watching her dark self murder and pillage with such glee and satisfaction on her face. "This is who I was. What I've always been. Our people, our race was raised like this, to be fighters, to stand up against all who opposed us and all who we deemed too weak to survive. My father… he turned me into a boy because he didn't want people to see his daughter… he wanted them to see his heir, his son, his legacy!" She cursed and backed away from the image only to step into another one. Her father stood beside her as they looked out at the falling pods… and while she put up a brave front… she saw the fear in her young eyes. The fear of Frieza. "I did what everyone wanted me to… I became what I was supposed to… and yet everything I ever cared about was taken away from me. What good is being a fighter if you can't protect the things that matter!?"

"You can! You do! You've protected the entire world with your strength, It's not you that's weak!" He grabbed Vega's shoulders turning her back on her former self. "It's her! She was too weak to care, too weak to protect what mattered. You're not! You've fought not only for yourself but the people you love, and care about."

 _As far as I'm concerned you're not my mother!_

Xena's voice cracked through the dreams and now instead of her past self she faced her daughter, the dark version of her sneering at her.

 _Bulma's a better mother than you'll ever be. All you've ever taught me was how to throw a punch. Bulma taught me to be smart, taught me about family and friendship, the only thing I got from you was selfish foolish pride!_

"Enough!" Vega covered her ears going to her knees sobbing. "Stop it! Stop it! Stop it!"

Goku stood over her and looked around, more and more shadows looming over threatening to swamp her in grief, fear, and negativity.

"This is gonna be harder than I thought."

 **~Back to the Battle~**

Xena choked out blood as Dabura landed a powerful punch to her belly and sent her skidding across desert gravel. She was bleeding from cuts and burns and felt her energy starting to waver. Dabura didn't look much better than her, his mouth leaking blood, his clothes torn in shred and his eyes wild with fury. It had been his rage that had sent her skittering.

"I grow tired of you, girl." He lowered to the ground his fingers flexing as red burning light filled them. "Time to end this."

Xena got to her feet laughing even as she wavered.

"I couldn't agree more." She cupped her hands, both sets of hands glowing with power.

Babidi couldn't help but shriek with joy as the needle of Majin Buu's pod was just on the edge of maximum. "It's happening! It's happening! Majin Buu will soon be with us!" He lifted his arms as the pod's heart beat went quick and rapid. Supreme Kai shuddered back, fear making him grow cold.

"We must retreat! We have no choice!"

"What? No! We have to try and stop this thing before it hatches and starts hurting people!" Gohan pleaded. "There must be something, you are the Supreme Kai for goodness sakes!"

"Yes!" Supreme Kai looked at him. "And unlike you I've seen what Buu is capable of. I'm telling you we don't have a choice! It's more than our present state can handle. This is time for strategy Gohan, not blind Heroics. We must regroup and come up with a better solution!"

"I can't! I'm sorry but I still have to try!" Gohan turned to the pod his eyes sharp.

"Please Gohan! We need you alive!"

"No! There's people I care about!" He could still hear Xena's screams of pain from the battle, and could recall the fight with cell when he'd been too stunned and frightened to move when she'd been mortally wounded and yet still continued to fight. "This time around I'm not just gonna sit around and wait for them to get hurt!"

With that fury and remembrance fueling him, Gohan braced himself and let the power inside him sing to life. All eyes shot in his direction as he screamed, the power of the Super Saiyan pouring out of him like liquid light.

"Now what do you suppose got him all riled up?" Babidi wondered blinking at the bright light.

"Ka...Me...Ha...Me…" Gohan cupped his hands and the ball of gold and blue light settled and formed in his palms. Dabura saw and sensed the rising energy and turned towards his master with shock and dread.

"Master Babidi!" The light from his hands vanished and he moved to help.

"Hey! Aren't you forgetting someone?!" Xena's voice stopped him and he snarled glancing back.

"Shut up G-" He turned to face her but saw no one but the desert. He spun back around and found himself face to face with Xena's hands.

"Gallant Gun-"

"No!"

"No!" Babidi stretched out his hands his screams meshing with Dabura's. Xena and Gohan's eyes held the same fierce and fear inducing blue of Super Saiyan form. Neither backed down and they let the power ripple out.

"Ha!"

"Fire!"From opposite sides their powers released in a mad fury engulfing their enemies in brilliant light. When the light and dust cleared the pod remained, but no longer throbbed with life. It steamed like a roasted pot sticker and sat stale and lifeless on its mount. Dabura had been turned to ash.

Xena panted from the exhertion and fell to a knee. She held her bleeding side and cursed a bit from the lack of a proper shirt. Gohan went straight to her ignoring the cries of Babidi who had somehow managed to evade being hit by Gohan's blast and now knelt beside the empty shell.

"You okay?" Gohan asked kneeling down. He noticed her clothing predicament and took off his tunic setting it over her like a dress. She smiled at him.

"Yeah, I'm alright… holy shit, Gohan. I did it." She leaned into him pressing her forehead to his. "We did it!"

"You sure did!" He helped her up. "You were amazing! No way your mom is gonna be upset with that performance!" He hugged her and despite himself spun her around once. Supreme Kai stared a moment at the situation and let out a little laugh of relief and embarrassment. These Saiyans… he mused. Were just full of surprises. Collecting himself he cleared his throat and approached them.

"You both performed admirably. However our business here is not quite finished." He motioned toward the stale empty pod. The poor pitiful wizard brought to tears at the sight of the empty shell. "I never thought I'd see the day where I'd see the great evil wizard brought to tears. I hope you realize the significance of this day Gohan. You were able to reach deep down inside yourself and release your full potential as you were meant to. Now Babidi's monster is destroyed and he has nothing left to protect him."

Xena felt Gohan tense beside her and she looked up at his face. The worry and frustration on his face puzzling her. "Gohan? What is it?"

"He's wrong… my last attack wasn't strong enough to destroy what was in that shell. Something did come out of it… and it… it's up there!" His eyes went to the sky where a thick flurry of pink smoke fluttered the sky.

She looked up at the sky, stretching her own senses she felt a cold tingle chill down her spine. She didn't sense anything out of it except….emptiness.

"I've got a bad feeling about this!"

 _ **Yay another update! This one popped out faster than I expected. Hopefully the next will be just as quick.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: A Dark Day**_


	16. A Dark Day

**Misguided Soul**

 **Summary: After 7 years of peace: Goku and Vega are living happily in the wilderness raising Tarble and his younger brothers Bardock and Goten together. Chichi has been married to Yamcha for five whole years and are expecting their first kid. As for Gohan and Xena, well things just got a little more interesting…**

 **Chapter 16:** _ **A Dark Day**_

Gohan could only glance up in shock and horror as the fluffy cloud of pink smoke condensed and formed into a being. His round pink bubble gum shape was child like and appeared harmless enough… but from the energy he was sensing, and the look on Supreme Kai's face, he knew he couldn't judge by the appearance.

"What in the bloody hell is that thing?" Xena grunted in disgust. "It looks like a piece of decorated cotton candy."

"Don't let his look deceive you, Xena. He may look innocent but I assure you that you're looking at pure evil." Kai assured her. He could never forget that disgusting creatures face. The horrible images of his past flooding back and twisting his gut into knots.

The three of them looked on in a mix of confusion, horror, and anger as Babidi approached him trying to establish if this truly was the creature of his father's creation.

"Are we going to just stand here and look at it, or are we gonna do something about it?" She let out a choked gasp as she heard rocks and rubble explode and crumble behind them. Xena had an instant to think "SHIT" before Dabura crawled out of the rock. "Damn it… I thought I'd killed him."

"Close enough," Gohan murmured. "Feel his energy, he's not gonna be much of a problem."

"Any enemy that's still breathing is a problem, Gohan. We've already got two of them still breathing we didn't need a third." Xena straightened her stature, her own muscles feeling wobbly from the fight.

Dabura stumbled out, gave one sister sneer in their direction before looking at Babidi and the figure that stood beside him. THAT was it? That ugly pink blob was what he had been helping to release. Disgust and anger boiled inside as he bypassed Xena and the others… he'd deal with them soon enough… and walked straight to Babidi.

"Don't tell me that's what we've worked so hard on. It's revolting, just look at it."

"Oh shut up, Dabura. The Kai is making scared and angry faces at it so this must be my father's marvelous creation. He just needs a bit of a boost is all."

"Boost? He's nothing but trash, a piece of spat out chewing gum!" Dabura stepped forward pointing an accusing finger at Buu. "I say we chalk up this ridiculous plan as a failure and rethink our strategy."

"Strategy? Dabura you insolent buffoon. There is no strategy without Buu! How can you be so-" he cut off as Buu made high pitched whistling sounds. Steam rose from his head and his eyes slut onto Dabura.

"Buu Mad! Buu Make you Dead!"

Dabura had to laugh.

"Don't be absurd. You fat piece of lard. You couldn't possibly-" Dabura cut off with a scream as Buu's fingers pierce into his eyes blinding him. He staggered and lashed out with fists blindly… but Buu knocked him away with one quick flick of his hand. Xena had to stare wide eyed as she saw this… the guy just flicked Dabura away with a brush of his hand.

"He… he bat him away.. Like a fly."

"Did you feel that energy? It's like he dipped into a well of endless energy!" Gohan trembled his eyes still wide with shock. "...but it felt so… empty. I don't know how to describe it."

"I can…" Xena said on a shaky breath. " I describe it as we're dead!"

 **~Out on the Lookout~**

Tarble paced. His mother and father had been closed off in that room for what seemed like hours though it had only been minutes since they'd arrived. Every second of time was precious and Tarble could feel the strange and threatening vibrations of energy like a warning bell in his head. He ran to the side of the lookout again, looking down at the clouds that rolled so calmly under them. His brother and sister were probably fighting for their lives right now, and he was stuck twiddling his thumbs while they fought.

"I can't take it anymore! I don't care what dad says, I'm going!" Tarble powered to Super Saiyan. He felt his brothers rush up behind him and whirled around his teal eyes shimmering. "Don't try to stop me you guys!"

"We have to! Tarble, you can't go by yourself! You heard what dad said, it's too dangerous!" Bardock shouted at him.

"I know it's dangerous, and that's just more of a reason for me to go. Xena and Gohan may be older but they're by themselves. They don't have any back up."

"Xena hates asking for help," Goten tried this time. "She wouldn't like it if you put yourself in danger thinking she couldn't handle herself."

"It's not that I don't trust her or Gohan to take care of themselves." Tarble put a hand to his stomach his eyes stormy with emotion. "Neither of you can understand, you haven't been with them as long as I have."

"Then try to help us understand, Tarble. Why do you want to go after them so badly?" Goten lowered his hands his eyes staring seriously at him. "I wanted to see the wizard and that Buu monster too, but dad says it's too dangerous, and just look what they did to mom."

"It's…. You know how we three have this connection between us?" He looked between his brothers and got the nod. "We fight together everyday, we know each other's moves and styles and can sometimes even sense what the others are thinking? Well I have that same connection with those two as well… especially Xena. She's the one who always took the time to spar with us when mom and dad were busy, she knew how to train us, knew how to pull out the best in us… and is always the one to defend us when mom was mad at us. Right now that connection is telling me she's in trouble… it's screaming in my head and I can't ignore it!"

"Then…" Goten clenched his fists unable to deny he had heard those same screams, but from Gohan. "I'm going too!"

"Me too!" Bardock pumped his fists. "Xena and Gohan have always been there for us, it's our turn to help them!"

"You can't both come with me. Who's gonna look after mom and dad while they're in there coma thing?"

Both of them looked at each other, Bardock bit his lip and then looked into his older brother's eyes. "I lost the tournament… so I'll stay… but you have to promise me you'll come back! I don't want mom and dad to yell at me if something happens to yah."

"I promise I'll do my best to come back with both of them." Tarble smiled and held out his fist so all three brothers could bump them together. "You with me Goten?"

"Yeah!" Goten shot into Super Saiyan mode. "Let's go!"

"Hurry!" Bardock shouted as he saw Videl racing toward them. "Videl's coming! Go!" He shoved them both off making them yelp, but it didn't take long for them to right themselves and shoot out as two golden darts into the sky.

"Gah! Not again! Where are those two going? Don't tell me they're going back to where the fighting is!" Videl put her hands on her hips narrowing her eyes on Bardock.

"I have to tell you that, cuz miss Chichi said it's bad to tell lies." Bardock grinned cheekily and rubbed the back of his head laughing.

 _ **~back on the battlefield~**_

"Your attention, please!" Babidi's voice shot through the air as he stood next to Buu, his negotiations with the monster finally over. "Here is my first command, kill those three idiots over there!"

"Go!" Thinking quickly Xena shoved Gohan and Supreme Kai backward and stood between them and Buu. "Get the Supreme Kai out of here!"

"What about you?"

"I don't have the energy to outrun him. You're faster than I am so do as I say and GO!" She started firing off ki blasts creating a large wild dust storm.

He hesitated only a fraction before grabbing Kai and taking off. He didn't like leaving her there but knew it was their only chance of escape. He zipped away quickly. Maybe if he could get away, send out a signal to his father, they'd be able to rescue Xena before she got herself killed.

"Stay alive, Xena… please!"

Xena wasn't too confident about her own survival. She had barely been able to beat Dabura let alone take on this incarnation of evil. Though the blasts hurled clouds of dust in the air Xena could feel the dark empty ki of Babidi's monster. It hadn't faltered or flickered by her attacks and she could feel him reaching into that void of darkness to release his own power.

His arms stretched out like bubblegum and those thick hands wrapped around her throat making her choke and flail when he yanked her through the clouds and straight to him. He stared at her even as he gripped her throat tightly. His lips were in a concentrated frown, his eyes tightly closed slits that opened when he smiled maniacally.

"You pretty girl!" Buu said matter o factly in his high sing song voice. "Buu like pretty girls"

"What?" Xena grit her teeth. Didn't it just figure. The first guy to openly flirt with her had to be a sick demented monster. "Ugly freak!" She used what energy she could to thrust her leg up and knee him in the gut.

Buu grunted and dropped her making her gasp for air.

"she say Oogly?" He looked to Babidi. "what does Oogly mean?"

Babidi grunted annoyed that he had let the Supreme Kai go. "She means your face would frighten small children."

"Oh.. Hahahaha...grrrrr"

Buus face went from childlike to annoyed real fast as he grasped the concept. He stepped toward her. She jerked back when he slammed his fist into her face. Pain seared across her skin like a fever. Added to the injuries she'd sustained during her fight with Dabura she wondered what kept her from just keeling over. She struggled back to her feet feeling fatigue and nausea mixed with the pain now. She would die here. She knew it. Was waiting for it. She let out a strangled cry when he hauled her up by the hair.

"You go bye bye now."

She slowly opened her eyes looking into the pink glowing ball Buu held up to her face. The heat radiating off it already searing her. She wondered why her mother's voice echoed in her mind now.

 _You're giving up already? Is that all the spine you have girl? He'll kill you and you'll just lie there and take it?_

She let the smile spread on her face. That was fine. She could die knowing Gohan was safe… and her parents would see to the safety of the Earth. Her only regret was not being able to take back the horrible things she said to her mother...and not being able to tell Gohan how she really felt.

"Gohan… " She said his name like a prayer and took a deep breath. It came out again in a whoosh as Buu went tumbling sideways into a nearby rock wall. Her dizzy and disoriented mind slowly looked up and she saw Gohan looking her over, cradling her in his arms.

"I got you."

Shock, and relief registered first. Okay, maybe she wasn't ready to die just yet. Then the panic hit her. She gripped his arm as tight as she could.

"I-Idiot… what are you doing….get lost."

"I am but I'm taking you with me first." He hauled her up and make two dashing runs before jetting up to the sky. He barely ascended 2 feet before a blast knocked them both out of the sky. Xena went skidding and she coughed up blood as her body hit a rock. Gohan quikly righted himself as their landing caused a dust storm. He hefted Xena up again and jumped over a rock to narrowly avoid the second blast.

"Buu make you go boom! Pow pow pow ow ow!"

The shrieking childish voice burned Xena's ears and despite herself she leaned into Gohan's protective embrace.

"Now you've done it. We're both gonna die. I told you to leave me. Why did you come back?"

"I'm not leaving without you." He held her to him. He could feel blood, her blood, wet on his hands and it made him seethe. "I was going to… until I realized all I've ever done is run away from a fight. I fought against the Ginyu Force, Cell, but in the end I've always had to rely on you. You were the competent one, the tactful one, the courageous one. I won't let you shelter me like you did in the past. Not anymore."

Buu was shouting now in a sing song voice. "Where are you? Buu find you!"

Xena looked up at Gohan, her eyes narrowing on his and she saw something familiar in his stare. Fierce determination. He'd fought and struggled all his life. Despite being the weak link he'd excelled, pushed the boundaries, kept stride with those older and more experienced.

" _I'm sorry, but I just can't watch anymore. I've always believed in you, but like you I can't just sit here while my loved ones are in danger!"_

The image of him as a boy saving her when she'd been crushed under Cell's power, sent all her emotions into a tailspin. Was it no wonder she felt for him the way she had no other? Tears wanted to spring fresh on her cheeks.

"You don't give yourself enough credit. You've always been able to hold your own. And even though you were scared you rose to the challenge. I've been able to do my best, to push my limits, because you were always there making me work for it." Those tears she held back now spilled from her eyes as the memories swam and overwhelmed her. To hell with it. She was gonna die anyway.

" Gohan I need to tell you something. Something I've kept hidden. I… I've always…"

"Found You!" Buu laughed from straight above. Xena barely let out a gasp as their bodies became covered in an eruption of light and debris. Gohan's scream mixed with hers as the two of them were separated to opposite ends of the field. Gohan stumbled to his feet, the haze and burn making each movement twinge and throb with a dull pain. His eyes scanned the area for Xena. He spotted her belly down choking on her own blood. She struggled and crawled trying to find the will to stand. He could feel her ki fluxing and flickering trying to push past the pain and blood loss.

He snarled and his eyes looked up at Buu who was still above them dancing and laughing like it was all a great big game.

"I won't let you down, never again!" He screamed and pushed his power to the maximum, he wouldn't go down without a fight. He had landed a pretty good kick beforehand when he'd helped Xena, but there was no bruise, no mark, and no sign of pain on the monster's face. What was this Buu thing made off? His skin just absorbed everything! He launched, punching and kicking in rushed fervor, his mind and instincts blinded by anger and desperation. He had to protect everyone, he had to hold Buu off til help arrived.

Xena could barely make out the sounds of fists flying, of Buu's laughter, and Gohan's grunts and shouts of battle. Panic bubbled into her throat as she lifted her head to try and find the source of it. The panic increased when her blurry vision found the two figures locked in battle. Gohan's hits were either missing or being absorbed. His face lit with fury and frustration. He fought so hard, so intense. She felt so pathetic suddenly, she clenched her fists and crawled. She tried crying out to him, but it came out hoarse and weak.

"Gohan… Gohan…"

"Buu stop playing with the idiot and finish him off!" Babidi called out from a distance in snarls and whines that hurt her ears.

"No!" She coughed as she screamed it. She struggled to her knees but immediately fell down again when she tried to prop onto her feet. SHe lifted her head and tears spilled out when she saw Gohan's advances stop. Buu had him by the front of his gi and smiled maniacally.

"You a big pest! You go away now!" He tossed Gohan up his hands forming a ball and Xena's blood went cold.

"GOHAN!"

The blast erupted and all she could hear was Gohan's screams of pain as his body was rocketed out to the distance. She kept her senses on him, on the light, on his ki that quickly drained away. When the ball suddenly exploded she felt the last flicker of life die and her heart just bled.

It wasn't real… it wasn't real… he had to be alive! Gohan couldn't die! Gohan wouldn't leave her!

"It's about time you finished that fool off. Now go and find the Supreme Kai! I have a bone to pick with that purple welp."

Fool? Gohan wasn't a fool.

"Boy gone now! Gone, gone, gone!" Buu spun in a little circle laughing. "Buu find purple man."

Gone? No… Gohan wasn't gone. She REFUSED to believe it… refused to believe that pink face freak could kill someone so kind, so courageous, so strong. She struggled to her feet pushing past the pain and wounds and just screamed.

The enemy's attention was back on her and she stood before them seething, her eyes teal and lit with rage and revenge.

"YOU ARE THE FOOL! I"m going to CRUSH you!"

Her mind sprang to life, thinking in milliseconds. He could regenerate and absorb attacks. Piccolo she knew could regenerate too so long as his head was undamaged. So one good blast at the upper body, destroy the head. All she needed was one good shot. She would put everything she had left… all the power in her body into one blast... and hope it was enough.

She cupped her hands pushing her power into them. She heard Babidi's laughter, heard him taunt and make fun of her pathetic attempts… he could laugh all he wanted. She didn't care. She'd finish this! She ran straight for him Buu jumping upright ready to counter. She phased appeared behind him, she heard Babidi shriek even as she screamed.

"THIS IS FOR GOHAN! GALLICK GUN!"

As the light exploded and overtook Buu's upper body she heard the creature shriek and scream from the power. Yes! That's right! Feel it! Feel my fury! Feel my pain! She poured it all out were no tears now. They'd dried up as the anger took over.

Babidi shielded his eyes and cowered up against a rock. When the light dimmed his eyes widened in horror as he saw buu's upper body had been blown clean off. All that remained were half a torso and legs.

Xena panted and her legs shook. She was deathly pale… but alive… still alive. She stared down at Buu's figure, a giddy almost hysterical victory laugh trembling on her lips.

"Buu…. my precious Buu! You killed him! You wretched girl! I'll get you for this!"

"Oh?!" Laughter still hot in her belly she stepped to him. Her legs felt like jello and she was pretty sure she spoke half delirious. "WHat are you gonna do, you roach? If I killed him?" She pointed at the pink blob. "Just what do you think I'm gonna do to you?"

Babidi shrieked and scrambled side to side as he was cornered. Xena raised a hand and Babidi screamed as he saw his life flash before his eyes. The dark laughter in Xena's voice died and she lowered her hand shaking. Her head slowly turned from Babidi to the pink mass. That aura… that power level…. No…. he couldn't be.

Buu's body wriggled with life and the pink remnants rolled up into a ball before Buu popped out whole again. Shock and horror had Xena stumbling away and her legs giving out.

"No… it can't be."

 _ **Sorry for the long pause in update! I keep going back and forth with certain ideas and on whether or not to include them. Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and look forward to the next.**_

 _ **Next Chapter: The Calvary**_


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